U.S. President Donald Trump has announced plans to drastically raise U.S. military spending to US$1.5 trillion in 2027.
This would be more than 50% higher than the US$901 billion budget approved by Congress in September.
In a post to Truth Social, Trump said the $1.5 trillion budget is especially needed in “these troubled and dangerous times”.
“This will allow us to build the 'Dream Military' that we have long been entitled to and, more importantly, that will keep us SAFE and SECURE, regardless of foe,” he said.
He said that the White House will “easily” be able to pass his proposed budget thanks to money being brought in by tariffs.
Economists have warned that the gap between U.S. spending and earnings has reached unsustainable levels.
These comments follow a separate Truth Social post from Trump, where he slammed defence companies for not producing weapons quickly enough.
In the post, he said he will not allow dividends or stock buybacks for defence companies until these issues are fixed.
Shares in major U.S defence markers Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and Raytheon rose more than 5% in extended trading following Trump’s announcement.
This also comes just days after the U.S. captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and took control of the oil-rich South American nation on Saturday after launching a large-scale military strike. It has also threatened to take Greenland by military force.
Since returning to office, Trump has been pushing U.S. allies to increase their defence spending.
