Defense Budget May Be Tapped For Bosnia

The White House is preparing a list of $1.6 billion in defense spending cuts to partially pay for the Bosnia troop deployment, according to documents obtained Thursday by The Associated Press.

The draft list proposes cutting money for an expanded fleet of B-2 bombers, Army and Marine Corps Reserve helicopters, machine guns, fighter planes and research projects.

A Pentagon official cautioned that the list, titled “Program Budget Decision No. 719,” is under review by the Office of Management and Budget and could be changed.

If approved by Congress, the cuts would provide most of the $2 billion the Pentagon estimates it will spend on the yearlong deployment of 20,000 ground troops to Bosnia.