WASHINGTON - The Pentagon on Friday recommended reducing the nation's nuclear missile stockpile by 10 percent, but Wyoming's F.E. Warren Air Force Basin may avoid any cuts.

In its Quadrennial Defense Review, the Pentagon said the reductions would start in fiscal year 2007. Five hundred Minuteman III missiles are based at F.E. Warren, Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota and Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana.

Warren Wenz, an attorney who lobbies for Malmstrom, said Friday that the Montana base is a likely target for the cuts, which would likely result in the loss of hundreds of jobs.

"The presumption is that it would be 50 (missiles) from here," he said.

Wenz said one of Malmstrom's missile squadrons, which includes 50 missiles, has a different operating system than all of the other squadrons. Because those missiles require some different parts and training, it could be the one that is cut, he said.

Montana Sen. Max Baucus agreed in an interview Friday.

"Talking with the Pentagon, it's pretty clear it's going to be Montana," he said, adding that it would be a "tall order" to keep the missiles.

The state's other senator, Republican Conrad Burns, appeared more hopeful.

"This is not a completed deal," he said. "There will be debate on this point between Congress and the Department of Defense."

Tucker Fagan, CEO of the Wyoming Business Council and an advocate for Warren, said that cutting the Malmstrom missiles makes the most sense.

"I have confidence that the Air Force will look at the business decisions and the military decisions of which is the right squadron to take down," he said.

Though the missile operations are based at Malmstrom, the missiles themselves are spread over hundreds of miles around north-central Montana.

"It's going to have an economic impact, that's for sure," Wenz said.

Wenz estimated that about 300 military jobs could be lost if those missiles are decommissioned. Baucus estimated there could be a loss of 400 to 500 military and civilian jobs.

Baucus said the missile cuts could also mean a loss of approximately $3 million in operating costs and federal funding for roads that access the missile sites.

"Cutting back on our missile defense at a time when we need a strong national defense system is foolish at best, and dangerous at worst," Baucus said.

Both Baucus and Burns have said they will continue fighting for new missions at Malmstrom if missile numbers are reduced.

"Montana has clear skies, low population, unimpeded air space, and fantastic facilities at Malmstrom that can be better utilized with new missions," Burns said.

U.S. Sen. Craig Thomas, R-Wyo., said nuclear weapons are still relevant today and should be maintained.

"We need to focus not only on protecting our nation from the dangers of terrorists, but also rogue nation states," he said. "The specific missile mission at F.E. Warren is not only important to the defense of our nation, but to Cheyenne and our state. I will continue my work with the Pentagon and the Air Force to modernize the facilities and capabilities at F.E. Warren to ensure its long-term sustainability."

The Pentagon document, more than a year in the making, outlines broad plans to reshape the military into a more agile fighting force better able to fight terrorism, in what the document calls the Long War, while still preserving the ability to wage large conventional wars. The review, which does not call for the elimination of any of the largest weapons programs, as initially expected, will guide how dollars are spent within the Pentagon budget.

U.S. Sen. Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., said he was troubled by the planned reduction in missiles, though he was "encouraged by the emphasis on moving the Department of Defense from the industrial age into the information and technology age.

"I agree that we need a more modern, responsive force, including a future-oriented missile force," he said. "Prevention is still a major part of the game, however, even though we are not fighting the Cold War anymore. One of the four bedrock principles of the report is deterrence. There isn't much in this world that is more deterring than 500 nuclear ballistic missiles, except a more modernized missile force of 500."