Army cutting thousands of positions over increased focus on China and Russia

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The Army is cutting 24,000 positions in a restructuring prompted by the changing nature of today’s battlefield, as the service faces its most dire recruiting challenge since the end of the draft more than 50 years ago.

For nearly two decades, the Army’s force structure has reflected its focus on counterterrorism and counterinsurgency operations that dominated the Defense Department’s attention after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

“The Army will continue to need capabilities related to these missions. But, in light of the changing security environment and evolving character of war, the Army is refocusing on conducting large-scale combat operations against technologically advanced military powers,” the Army said in a just-released study that emphasizes rising threats from China and Russia.

The cuts will reduce the Army’s force structure from about 494,000 troops to 470,000 by fiscal 2029. Some of the reductions will occur in support units assigned to special operations forces. Also facing the chopping block will be cavalry squadrons assigned to U.S.-based Stryker brigade combat teams and some positions among security force assistance brigades, which train foreign forces.

“These planned reductions are to authorizations (spaces), and not to individual soldiers (faces). The Army is not asking current soldiers to leave,” the study said. “As the Army builds back end strength over the next few years, most installations will likely see an increase in the number of soldiers actually stationed there.”

While the Army is cutting positions in some units that had been focused on counter-insurgency operations, it will add troops to others such as anti-drone and air defense units. One of the most significant force structure changes will be the build-out of the Army’s five Multi-Domain Task Forces — units that can conduct intelligence-gathering missions, launch cyber attacks and deliver long-range artillery attacks.

“Implementing these force structure changes represents a significant shift for the Army, moving the Army away from counterinsurgency and counterterrorism operations to a focus on large-scale combat operations against highly sophisticated adversaries,” the study said.