WASHINGTON, March 18 (Xinhua) -- The U.S. Department of Defense said Monday it had requested 22.95 billion U.S. dollars to fund its military intelligence program (MIP) in fiscal year 2020.

"The total, which includes both the base budget and Overseas Contingency Operations funding, is 22.95 billion and is aligned to support the national defense strategy," the Pentagon said in a statement.

The statement said it will not release any detailed figures regarding this part of the budget for security reasons.

The MIP budget will be part of the overall defense budget for the fiscal year starting on Oct. 1. The Pentagon said on March 12 that it needed 718.3 billion dollars for fiscal year 2020 to pay for a 3.1 percent military pay raise, 78 F-35 joint strike fighters, the Columbia class ballistic missile submarine program, one Ford class aircraft carrier, three Virginia class submarines and three Arleigh Burke destroyers, among other hard and software.

The MIP is a collection of programs that acquire intelligence solely for planning and conduct of tactical military operations. The MIP, together with the National Intelligence Program, form the U.S. Intelligence Community, a federation of 16 separate government intelligence agencies. Enditem

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