Pentagon watchdog confirms Iran war caused munitions shortfalls, contradicting Trump

Figure caption: Watch: What does the munitions shortage mean for the US?

By Bernd Debusmann Jr, White House reporter

The US Defence Department's inspector general has stated that the war with Iran has led to "shortfalls" in munitions and a bottleneck in resupply, contradicting President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly denied the US is facing shortages.

Trump has claimed US munitions supplies are "virtually unlimited" and described reporting otherwise as "fake news."

However, the independent watchdog reported that the US spent more than $22 billion on munitions from February through June, resulting in "strategic inventory shortfalls."

When asked about the watchdog's report, the White House said the US had "more than enough" munitions.

The report provides a first-of-its-kind, independent glimpse into US weapons stockpiles — data that is typically classified. Previous estimates have painted a dire picture of US shortages.

Key Findings

Over the course of the war, US forces have expended vast quantities of both long-range ground attack systems and the air and missile defences used to intercept incoming Iranian attacks.

• A late July estimate from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) found that stocks of some interceptors — such as the Patriot missile and Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) — were significantly depleted, in some cases by more than half.
• The inspector general's report did not disclose exactly how many weapons remain.
• It did, however, note inventory shortfalls and reveal "industrial base bottlenecks" for munitions resupply.
• The report added that the Defence Department is now working to "streamline procurement processes and production lead times" to address the shortages and "respond rapidly to a contingency."

White House Response

The White House has rejected the watchdog's assessment.

"The United States military has more than enough munitions, ammo, and stockpiles to serve all of the Commander-in-Chief's strategic goals and beyond," spokeswoman Anna Kelly said in a statement on Tuesday.

Trump and other administration officials have also sought to cast reports of shortages as false and "treasonous".

• In a 4 August X post, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth described news reporting on the shortages as "not true."
• In a lengthy Truth Social post on 3 September, Trump claimed that the US had "virtually unlimited" amounts of ammunition and is "stockpiling and preparing for any contingency that could happen."

Financial and Equipment Losses

The watchdog's report also notes that equipment losses have totalled $3.7 billion, with another $7.4 billion in other expenditures. Overall, the US spent $33.4 billion (£24.7 billion) on the war from 28 February to 30 June.

A separate estimate released on Tuesday by the Congressional Budget Office put the total cost of the war higher, at $38 billion, which includes replaced expended munitions, equipment lost in battle, increased flying hours, and greater fuel costs.

Image caption: US Patriot air defence systems, seen here at Raytheon headquarters in Massachusetts, have been heavily used in the Iran war.

Among the losses have been:

• Four F-15E fighter jets
• A highly advanced F-35 Joint Strike Fighter
• 30 MQ-9 drones destroyed in "various circumstances"

Political Context

When US and Israeli strikes began, Trump repeatedly said that the conflict would be over within weeks. More recently, he said the conflict might not end until "right after" the November midterm elections in the US.

Polls show that the war is unpopular among Americans. One Reuters/Ipsos poll released in early September indicated that only 23% of Americans — and only half of Republicans — believe the US to be in a stronger position with Iran compared with before hostilities broke out.

Related Topics

• Iran
• Donald Trump
• Iran war
• United States

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