US defence policy under Obama: trajectories in budgets, military deployments and force structures

Abstract

This article assesses the major trajectories that have characterized US defence policy under the Obama administration. The use of US armed forces has been shaped by the interplay of President Obama’s non-interventionist instincts and a deteriorating security environment – leading to incremental re-engagement in Afghanistan, the Middle East and Europe. By contrast, more structural planning decisions on the size of the military and on overseas defence posture have been characterized by longer-term and cyclical developments that do not neatly fit into the time-span of an individual administration. The trajectories of US defence policy are also highly relevant for European policy-makers, as the wars in Eastern Ukraine and Syria have cast a new light on the security and defence role of the United States in Europe.