Trump Hails US Troops As The 'Greatest Fighting Force In The History Of The World,' Promises Pay Raises: 'America's Military Will Soon Be Bigger, Better, Stronger And More Powerful Than Ever'

As part of his ongoing Middle East tour, President Donald Trump addressed service members stationed at Al Udeid Air Base, promising a pay raise and lauding the military's achievements.

What Happened: Citing the GOP Bill, which includes an extra $150 billion for military spending, Trump said, "My 2026 budget includes across the board – maybe you don’t want to look for the good of the country, you don’t have to take it – pay raises for each and every one of you. Substantial pay raises."

He then called the U.S. military "without a doubt the greatest fighting force in the history of the world."

Referring to America’s cutting-edge defense capabilities, he said, "We have the strongest military in the world. It’s not even a contest. We have the best equipment, nobody has equipment like us, nobody has the planes or the missiles or anything else." He added, "As your commander-in-chief, I’m here to say that America’s military will soon be bigger, better, stronger and more powerful than ever."

According to Fox News, he also criticized former President Joe Biden's handling of the Afghanistan exit and mentioned the U.S. service members who were martyred during the Kabul evacuation.

See Also: Bernie Sanders Calls Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ A ‘Death Sentence,’ Says It Delivers $235 Billion Tax Break To Top 0.2%—While 99.8% Of Americans Get Nothing

Why It Matters: The Al Udeid Air Base, where Trump made these statements, is one of the U.S.’s largest Middle Eastern bases and a strategic center for U.S. Central Command operations. The speech to the troops came a day after his meeting with Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Doha, finalizing a $1.2 trillion economic agreement on major commitments across aviation, defense, energy, and technology sectors, including a "historic" $96 billion deal with Boeing. This came after a separate $600 billion investment pledge the administration secured in Saudi Arabia.

Trump's statements about a "bigger" military are in contrast with remarks he made in February, when he said, "there’s no reason for us to be spending almost $1 trillion on the military". Last month, however, reports emerged of a $36 billion plan to reshape the Army’s structure, workforce, and acquisition systems.

These developments come on the heels of a SIRI study revealing that in 2024, U.S. military expenditure touched $997 billion, making up 66% of NATO's total and 37% of global defense spending, which reached $2.7 trillion.

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