WASHINGTON [MENL] -- The House and Senate have agreed to boost funds for
U.S. missile defense in systems meant for export to the Middle East.House and Senate conferees have reached agreement on the $393 billion
defense budget for fiscal 2003 that calls for extra funding for the PAC-3
and other U.S. anti-missile programs. The PAC-3 has been offered to U.S.
allies in the Middle East.House Armed Services Committee chairman Bob Stump, a Republican from
Arizona, said the $7.8 billion authorized for missile defense -- $814.3
million of which is allocated for the Defense Department for
counterterrorism -- marks the fifth straight year of real increases in
defense spending. Stump said the fiscal 2003 defense budget is the largest
increase in nearly 20 years."Rogue nations such as North Korea, Iran, and Iraq are actively seeking
or testing ballistic missiles capable of striking the U.S. homeland, and
U.S. allies and U.S. forward deployed troops already face a growing threat
from shorter range ballistic missiles," the conference report of the
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2003 said. "The
proliferation of ballistic missile technologies, and the dangers of an
intentional, accidental, or unauthorized launch of a ballistic missile are
serious risks to U.S. national security."
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