Until recently, the US was considered a country bogged down in an ongoing war in Afghanistan, according to a member of Congress.
However, given the withdrawal of American troops from the country, it can be argued that Washington "released a lot of money, human and intellectual resources" that can be directed to other projects, Murphy said.
"Now we can switch to those areas of confrontation in which we are able to prevail," - he clarifies.
The message published on the senator's website mentions how important it is to invest in the development of diplomatic and non-military means to combat "threats" from Moscow and Beijing.
“When more people work in American military grocery stores than in the State Department, when the Ministry of Defense is the only structure that has enough resources for operational deployment in a conflict zone, then we get what we asked for - an asymmetric military clash with countries such as China. and Russia, in which we are losing, ”he states.
In this regard, according to Murphy, the time has come for the American authorities to decide to increase funding for the activities of the State Department and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) "to achieve success" in the designated areas.
Earlier, the former head of the US National Center for Counterintelligence and Security, William Evanina, spoke at the Senate Intelligence Committee with a report on the "challenges" from China and Russia.
Moscow poses a "heightened threat" in intelligence and cyberspace, he said.
For his part, in May 2021, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, during his first meeting with US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, said that Washington and Moscow needed to sort out bilateral relations.