A bipartisan, bicameral group of lawmakers, led by Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., is urging leaders of the Senate and House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense to invest in the U.S. Marine Corps’ force modernization efforts. The lawmakers noted that the Marine Corps Force Design initiatives are crucial to boosting maritime defense and countering China’s aggression in the Indo-Pacific, Manchin’s office said Tuesday.
“The Marine Corps’ ongoing implementation of Force Design has prioritized investments towards new technologies, formations, platforms, and capabilities. These prioritized efforts have increased lethality, mobility, and survivability to maintain a competitive advantage over our pacing competitor, China,” the letter reads.
According to the lawmakers, the Marine Corps has made significant progress since Force Design began, such as creating adaptive concepts to enable joint missions and investing in experimentation and wargaming events.
“The Marine Corps has delivered. It is now time for us to deliver and provide the support necessary to accelerate the Marine Corps’ full vision of Force Design,” the lawmakers said.
