President Donald Trump’s most recent budget plan calls for a $54 billion increase in military spending, largely at the expense of the Environmental Protection Agency, State Department and foreign aid.

These institutions are incredibly important to the United States, and are only becoming more so in our polluted, politically fragmented world. The Department of Defense (DOD) should receive this increase in funding in order to maintain America’s national security; however, it should not come at the expense of these agencies and programs.

If nothing else, the DOD should receive an additional $36 billion. This “increase” would simply allow the administration and American people to see what is actually being spent; the Obama administration reportedly overspent its military budget by this amount, according to WIRED. The new budget should reflect this.

That leaves a real funding bump of about $18 billion.

This money could also go to very good use. According to Defense News, about half of the Navy and Marine Corps’ F/A-18 fighter jet fleet is out of commision due to maintenance concerns. The increase in military funding could help solve this issue, repairing our current assets without actually increasing the size or scope of our military-industrial complex.

Similarly, the Air Force is short about 700 pilots due to problems in recruitment and retention, according to Gen. Dave Goldfein, its chief of staff. The additional funding the DOD could receive should be directed to fixing these issues through increasing pay and benefits to military personnel, as well as improving training programs.

If the $54 billion is spent in these ways, it would be a benefit both to the armed services and the American people in general through the improvement of national security in troubling times.

North Korea recently launched four missiles capable of reaching mainland Japan and possibly the United States, according to Japanese analysts and the South Korean joint Chiefs of Staff. Additionally, we appear to be headed for a second Cold War with Russia, a nation which repeatedly commits war crimes with impunity in Syria and has invaded other sovereign nations in recent years.

Yet, this budget should only pass if the shortfalls regarding other institutions like the EPA and State Dept. are resolved. The EPA does essential work in the modern world which many take for granted. For example, The New York Times recently published an account of how the agency cleaned the air in that city; it used to be physically tangible due to smog and industrial pollution.

The State Dept. is incredibly important in the increasingly politically fragmented international arena. With the global resurgence of nationalism and fundamentalism, it is imperative that we maintain our diplomatic standing and relations with other countries, upon whom our economic and political success increasingly relies.

The general well being of the American people depends on the funding of these programs. However, it also rests on the ability of our nation to defend itself in a hostile environment. Ideally, the United States would not pay for its security at the expense of programs that are both domestically and internationally essential: I, for one, would suggest that we either borrow the money considering that interest rates are quite low, or raise taxes on the rich and close corporate loopholes.

The military and American public deserve this budget increase. Just as long as the method of paying for it isn’t more costly in the long run.