Record $901 billion USA defense policy bill for 2026

U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday signed into law a record $901 billion defense policy bill for 2026, increasing funding for advanced technologies to deter China, for Taiwan to reinforce its defense capabilities and for military exercises with Indo-Pacific allies.


The National Defense Authorization Act, outlining security priorities and authorizing budgetary plans, includes a 3.8 percent pay raise for all service members and $400 million in assistance to Ukraine for each of the next two fiscal years.


Regarding Asia, the law spanning over 3,000 pages contains a provision requiring the Trump administration to maintain the number of U.S. troops deployed in South Korea at 28,500 and a $1.5 billion commitment to new security support for the Philippines.


The package for the fiscal year to September 2026, which turned out to be about $8 billion more than Trump had requested, extends the Pacific Deterrence Initiative, part of U.S. efforts to enhance its posture in the Indo-Pacific through military exercises with its allies and partner countries in the region.


The law authorizes more than $2.7 billion of essential military construction projects in the Indo-Pacific and $1 billion in funds for security cooperation with Taiwan that is facing increased military pressure from China, which regards the self-governing democratic island as part of its own territory.


Under the law, the Pentagon is required to establish a joint program with Taiwan by March 1 to enable “the fielding of uncrewed systems and counter-uncrewed systems,” including “co-development and co-production” of such capabilities.


With regard to Japan, a key ally in the region, the United States reaffirms its commitment to “developing advanced military capabilities, upgrading command and control relationships, fostering interoperability across all domains and improving sharing of information and intelligence.”