The U.S. Defense Department plans to slash the budget for missile defense including programs to address a threat from North Korea as part of its budget request for fiscal 2017, the department said Tuesday.
The Pentagon estimated the amount of the overall defense budget for the next fiscal year starting in October at $582.7 billion, up from $580.3 billion for the current year, including $58.8 billion to finance combat operations overseas, up from $58.6 billion.
The Pentagon called for $9.1 billion for missile defense programs including capabilities to address the growing threat from North Korea's intercontinental ballistic missiles, which drew international condemnation by launching a long-range rocket Saturday in defiance of U.N. Security Council resolutions.