Panetta: US defense cuts won't be done in 'hasty' way

US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta vowed on Wednesday to ensure that cuts to defense spending are not carried out in a "hasty, ill-conceived way" that would undermine US national security.

In a message to US troops worldwide a day after President Barack Obama signed a deficit reduction deal that would cut at least $350 billion in defense spending, Panetta said that a second round of up to $500 billion in cuts would be "completely unacceptable." (Reuters)