INDEPENDENCE, MO. ? Sen. John Kerry charged here Thursday that the Bush administration has instituted a “backdoor draft” to deal with a military stretched thin by deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan, and pledged as president to expand and transform the armed services to handle more effectively the unconventional threats of the 21st century.

In his most extensive remarks on the future of the American military, Kerry said he would increase the active-duty Army by 40,000 soldiers, including a doubling of U.S. Special Forces; speed development of new technologies and equipment to meet threats posed by terrorist networks; integrate the National Guard into the nation’s homeland security strategy; and seek ways to ease burdens on military families.

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., right, hugs former Sen. Jean Carnahan, D-Missouri, before speaking Thursday at the Harry S. Truman Presidential Museum and Library in Independence, Mo.

The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee said that, to pay for part of the cost of his proposals, he would cut back current funding levels for a national missile defense system, which he characterized as “the wrong priority” at a time when the nature of the threats has changed.

“From day one, this administration has been obsessed with threats from other states, instead of opening their eyes to the perils of the new century: terrorist organizations with or without ties to rogue nations and failed states, entities that can become their sanctuaries,” Kerry said in a speech at the Harry S. Truman Presidential Museum and Library. “These are the enemies our military is facing, and this is where we must train, arm and equip our military to win.”

It was the Massachusetts senator’s third major address on foreign policy in a week. He combined strong rhetoric designed to reassure voters that he would be a capable commander in chief with criticism of President Bush’s policies aimed at casting himself as a more forward-looking military leader.

As part of Thursday’s program, Kerry advisers announced a military advisory panel for the campaign that included two former chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a former director of central intelligence and other retired military commanders.

Bush campaign spokesmen challenged Kerry’s diagnosis and his commitment to a strong military, with Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., describing Kerry’s reference to a “backdoor draft” as “absurd.” The Bush officials pointed to Kerry’s past positions in opposition to some major weapons programs and upbraided him for campaigning in Florida on Wednesday rather than returning to the Senate to vote for a $25 billion appropriation for troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, which passed 95 to 0.