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THE ARMY is facing a situation that a senior general has called an “unprecedented challenge” to get recruits. The information revealed by the Associated Press indicates that the draft would fall short of the force’s planned number by 2022.
“The Army is significantly cutting the total number of soldiers it expects to have on the force over the next two years (…) Army officials said Tuesday that the service will fall about 10,000 soldiers short of its planned end strength for this fiscal year, and the outlook for next year is bleaker,” the Associated Press explained.
The future of the Army
Joseph Martin, the Army’s vice chief of staff, projects a total force of 466,400 by 2022, down from a planned 476,000. He said the service could end in 2023 with between 445,000 and 452,000 soldiers.
“With just two and a half months left in the fiscal year, the Army has achieved only 50 percent of its 60,000-soldier recruiting goal, according to Lt. Col. Randee Farrell, spokesman for Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth. Based on those numbers and trends, the Army is likely to miss the goal by nearly 25% as of Oct. 1. If shortfalls continue, Martin said, they could have an impact on readiness,” the Associated Press reported.
Despite the situation, the Army is investing in promoting recruits. “The military services rely heavily on face-to-face meetings with young people in schools or at fairs and other large public events. And they are only now starting to return to something close to normal after two years of the pandemic.”
Williams Perdomo es periodista y escritor, especializado en las fuentes Política y Cultura.