Joint Chiefs of Staff,
Washington, DC.
Memorandum for the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Technology.
Subject: National Missile Defense.

1. This memorandum is to inform you of The Joint Requirements Oversight Councils (JROC) position of prioritizing a Theater Missile Defense (TMD) capability over a National Missile Defense (NMD) capability.

2. The JROC believes that with the current and projected ballistic missile threat, which shows Russia and China as the only countries able to field a threat against the US homeland the funding level of NMD should be no more than $500 million per year and TMD should be no more than $2.3 billion per year through the FYDP. These funding levels will allow us to continue to field critical TMD/NMD systems to meet the projected threats and, at the same time, save dollars that can be given back to the Services to be used for critical recapitalization programs.

3. We believe the proposed TMD/NMD acquisition levels are balanced and proportional and after great potential for achieving an affordable ballistic missile defense architecture that meets our joint warfighting needs.

W.A. OWENS,

Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

THOMAS S. MOORMAN, JR.,

General, USAF, Vice Chief of Staff.

J.W. PRUEHER,

Admiral, U.S. Navy, Vice Chief of Naval Operations.

R.D. HEARNEY,

Assistant Commander of the Marine Corps.

RONALD H. GRIFFITH,

General, U.S. Army, Vice Chief of Staff.