US weapons orders exceed $900 bln but allies have to wait for deliveries — officials

WASHINGTON:  US weapons orders have exceeded $900 billion but allies and partners have to wait for the deliveries, Secretary of State Marco ...

WASHINGTON:  US weapons orders have exceeded $900 billion but allies and partners have to wait for the deliveries, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said in an op-ed for the USA Today.

"US defense sales remain at an all-time high with 43% of the global market share," the op-ed reads, adding that over 16,000 current orders "total more than $900 billion."

However, Rubio and Hegseth note that "allies and partners who willingly offer advanced payments must wait patiently, often several years, until we have produced enough systems to exceed our needs and begin to meet theirs." Meanwhile, lengthy timelines tempt US allies "to look to other suppliers who claim they can deliver faster, even if they offer inferior products."

The op-ed notes that the US administration had to find a new way of managing weapons sales after the previous strategy proved ineffective. The new strategy is aimed at "shortening the wait times and lowering the costs." According to Rubio and Hegseth, "it revitalizes the American defense industrial base with growth and increased production capacity, and it means unlocking hundreds of billions in additional investment for production lines."

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