Secretary of Defense James Mattis on Monday called on Congress to end the automatic defense budget cuts triggered by sequestration, saying in a speech in Washington, D.C. that a properly funded Department of Defense is necessary to keep America’s military the best fighting force in the world.

In a speech at the Association of the U.S. Army’s annual meeting, Mattis warned that automatic spending cuts have hurt the military’s ability to operate.

“We must never lose sight of the fact that we have no God-given right to victory on the battlefield,” Mattis said, describing the importance of training, organization and personnel policies.

Mattis then called on Congress to address sequestration and not be passive as automatic defense spending cuts decrease America’s “competitive edge” over its adversaries.