Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates called the significant defense budget cuts "a serious mistake" on Fox News Sunday, saying it appeared the U.S. did not seem to want to defend its global interests.
The Pentagon budget for 2015 this week, as announced by Chuck Hagel, is $495 billion, $113 billion less than what was targeted in last year's budget, and the army will be cut to its smallest level since before World War II.
"You know, when we've cut the budget before at the end of the Cold War, at the end of Vietnam and at other times, it's been because we thought the world was going to be a safer place," Gates said. "At least, we thought so temporarily at the time. No one can make that case right now."
Gates said hostile countries like Iran and North Korea operate on the 20th century, zero-sum mode of "I win, you lose."
"Frankly, the pace at which both the Europeans and the United States is cutting their defenses, regardless of the facts on the ground in terms of the number of ships and number of planes, it certainly sends a signal that we are not interested in protecting our global interests," he said.
Full exchange:
CHRIS WALLACE: Secretary, would you have resigned as Defense Secretary rather than preside over those cuts, and do you think they do damage to the nation's security?
ROBERT GATES: Well, I don't know the answer to the first question. I think that the cutting the defense budget in significant ways right now is a serious mistake. You know, when we've cut the budget before at the end of the Cold War, at the end of Vietnam and at other times, it's been because we thought the world was going to be a safer place. At least, we thought so temporarily at the time. No one can make that case right now. You look at the situation in Ukraine and our relationships with Russia. You look at the tensions between China and Japan and in the South China Sea. You look at Iran and North Korea. These guys are operating on the 20th century model of nation states. Boundaries matter, strategic interests matter. Zero sum game. I win, you lose. This is the way these countries look at the world. It's different than the way the West Europeans and we look at it, and frankly the pace at which both the Europeans and the United States is cutting their defenses, regardless of the facts on the ground in terms of the number of ships and number of planes, it certainly sends a signal that we are not interested in protecting our global interests.