DOD Reserve Components: Issues Pertaining to Readiness

Abstract

I am pleased to be here today to discuss issues pertaining to the readiness of the Department of Defenses (DOD) reserve components. When DOD adopted the Total Force policy in 1973, it intended to better integrate the active and reserve forces so that they could effectively carry out the U.S. national security strategy. The strategy during the Cold War required that U.S. forces be able to meet the demands of a global conflict with the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact. Since the end of the Cold War, new regional dangers have replaced the global Soviet threat, and reserve forces must adapt to meet these new challenges. Our work suggests that at least one reserve component has not sufficiently adapted to the new challenges and therefore may not be prepared to carry out its assigned missions. Our work also shows that too much force structure exists in some areas, which results in an inefficient use of defense resources. These findings are significant because both DOD and Congress are concerned with the long-term readiness of U.S. forces and are attempting to find the necessary funds within the defense budget to modernize the force.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Mar 21, 1996
Accession Number
AD1166925

Entities

People

  • Richard A. Davis

Organizations

  • United States Government Accountability Office

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Defense
  • Air Force
  • Air National Guard
  • Cold War
  • Combat Forces
  • Department Of Defense
  • Deployment
  • Employment
  • Force Structure
  • Logistics
  • Marine Corps
  • National Guard
  • National Security
  • Personnel Management
  • Security
  • Training
  • United States
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Maritime Combat Support and Expeditionary Logistics.
  • Personnel Management and Statistics in the Military and Department of Defense
  • Public Financial Management and Budgeting