Marine Corps plans for battle will be less heavy

Tasks and Purpose:
The Marines need to slim down in order to fight big wars against China and Russia, according to Marine Corps Commandant Gen. David Berger.

Currently, the Marine Corps is built to fight another Desert Storm, Berger told reporters during a roundtable on Wednesday.

"We are big and we are heavy," Berger said. "We have to go on a diet."

Toward that end, the Marine Corps is working on a 10-year plan to make sure it has Marines in the right military occupational specialties in order to respond quickly should war with Russia or China break out, Berger said.

While China and Russia have fearsome armored and other mechanized units, the Marine Corps does not expect to fight massive tank battles against either country, he said.

"We will absolutely fight combined arms, but will not take them on in a symmetrical fashion," Berger said. "That would be stupid. That would be dumb."

Instead, the Marine Corps is looking at how to best disperse its forces to launch several sea-based attacks against an enemy from the same time, he said.

In a fight against China or Russia, the Marine Corps would return to its maritime roots instead of being another land force to compliment the Army, Berger explained.
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They will need missile defense weapons to battle both of these powers.  That is especially true in defending the landing craft used in amphibious operations.

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