Read the most recent CSIS research on Department of Defense acquisition policy and contracting trends.
Control over the production of critical minerals necessary for defense manufacturing processes is a new feature of the escalating tensions between the United States and China. This report explores the state of the supply chain for rare earth elements, a type of critical mineral, the near-monopoly that China holds over it, and potential options for the United States to secure access to those minerals.
The damage happening today in the aviation sector is highly likely to spill over into the defense industrial base through defense supply chains. Recognizing and addressing this reality is essential to avoid profound long-term damage to national security.
China and Russia have prioritized strengthening their bilateral defense relationship in recent years. This report examines a key aspect of Sino-Russian defense ties, military-technical cooperation (MTC), and offers recommendations for U.S. policymakers.
March marks a critical month for U.S.-Turkish relations, chiefly on the topic of Ankara’s recent acquisition of the S-400 from Russia. Asya Akca and Greg Sanders answers the critical questions surrounding the issue.
Seamus Daniels and Todd Harrison assess budget execution for DoD acquisition accounts. This report compares obligation rate projections released by the DoD Comptroller with traditional DoD budget execution benchmarks and the actual obligation rates for acquisition accounts.
Critics of Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) funds point to regular base budget activities funded under OCO and its use to skirt discretionary spending limits. However, blaming OCO for our defense budget blunders, or calling for its complete elimination, punishes those who need OCO’s benefits without effectively punishing those who’ve instigated its abuse.
Small fleets of aircraft are eroding the purchasing power of the Air Force and limiting its ability to grow or even sustain the size of its current force.
Every few years—and usually after a big satellite program in DoD runs into trouble—the popularity of small satellites resurges. Swapping big satellites for “smallsats,” however, will not address those problems.
This year, CSIS will be analyzing the acquisition system through a series of topics papers. The first paper in our 2019 report series presents analysis of the topline DoD contracting trends, focusing on the defense acquisition system’s response to the 2018 NDS and new administration priorities.
The future poses two risks to the administration’s plans: (1) the lack of real growth in future budgets will hamper the launching of further initiatives; and (2) a softening of public, and then political, support could undermine both budgets and an engagement strategy.