60% of US navy, air force deployed in Asia Pacific by 2020

MANILA, Philippines - The United States is positioning the bulk of its Air Force and Navy forces as well as its "best and most advanced equipment" in the Asia-Pacific region in six years despite budget constraints, US Deputy Defense Secretary Bob Work said.

In a Pentagon report over the weekend, Work told a Washington-based think tank that a "geographically dispersed, operationally resilient [and] politically sustainable" posture is being sought.

"We may not have as many forces as we would like, but 60 percent of the forces will be in the Asia-Pacific region," he said.

The Department of Defense faces doubts on its commitment to President Obama's foreign policy of rebalancing to the region. Work lamented budgetary pressures, but insisted that the so-called pivot remains a "real part of a broader reexamination of our global posture."

"Regardless of the level of our budget, that will go forward," he added. "The Asia Pacific rebalance continues apace."

Key players in the region including US allies, the Philippines and Japan, have been embroiled for years in potentially dangerous maritime disputes over the East and South China seas as China stakes its sweeping claims through the use of civilian vessels, economic activities as well as reclamation projects.

Citing Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, Work said the US' alliances remain the backbone of its posture in the region.

"It is the revitalization of all those alliances and partnerships that is a signature part of our Asia-Pacific rebalance and our entire global posture," he said.

Work said that the repositioning of forces aims to maintain peace and prosperity "in one of the most important regions in the world."

"Pacific air forces as going to have our most advanced weapons, to include stealthy, long-range attack missiles and longer-range air defense missiles," Work said.

The Navy, meanwhile, will have "long-range anti-ship missile that will allow it to engage ships at standoff ranges."

Besides the involvement of US navy and air force, the US army will have "more than 100,000 soldiers when all is said and done in the Asia-Pacific region," the defense official said.

Army units rotating through Afghanistan the past years, moreover, are returning along with their equipment, attack aviation assets such as Apache helicopters to the US Pacific Command.

The region will also see a "more lethal" Army, particularly in Korea, with new investments in electronic warfare.

Work said that the Marines are also distributing four "powerful" air-ground task forces around the Pacific.

In terms of equipment, Work said the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter will go first to the Pacfic, while the "very stealthy and highly capable Zumwalt destroyer" will be based in the region by 2018 as well, he added.

The defense agency is similarly moving terminal high-altitude defense, or THAAD, and Patriot batteries to key locations, while the area of Japan will be reinforced with Aegis ballistic missile defense ships.