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US missile stockpiles severely depleted amid terrorist war on Iran: Report

A Patriot antimissile system launcher is seen in Rzeszow, Poland.

The US military has dangerously depleted its arsenal of critical missiles following its seven-week campaign of aggression against Iran, creating a “near-term risk” of ammunition shortages in any future major conflict, defense experts and sources familiar with internal Pentagon assessments say.

The staggering depletion comes as part of the US-Israeli war of terrorism on Iran, which has seen Washington unleash relentless airstrikes and missile barrages on civilian infrastructure such as bridges, hospitals, energy and steel plants and other installations across the Islamic Republic.

A new analysis by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) reveals that American forces have expended at least 45% of their Precision Strike Missiles, more than half of their THAAD interceptors, and nearly 50% of their Patriot air defense missile stockpiles during the unlawful aggression.

These figures closely align with classified Pentagon data, according to three individuals familiar with the assessments.

The US military has also burned through approximately 30% of its Tomahawk cruise missiles, over 20% of its long-range Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles (JASSMs), and between 10% and 20% of its SM-3 and SM-6 missiles.

While the Pentagon has signed contracts to expand missile production, delivery timelines stretch three to five years — even with increased capacity.

Retired US Marine Corps Colonel Mark Cancian, a co-author of the CSIS report, warned that the aggressive campaign has opened a “window of increased vulnerability,” particularly in the western Pacific, where stockpiles are now insufficient to confront a near-peer adversary such as China.

Rebuilding depleted inventories to pre-war levels, the report concludes, will take one to four years, with additional years required to reach adequate levels for a potential conflict in the Pacific.

“Even before the Iran war, stockpiles were deemed insufficient for a peer competitor fight. That shortfall is now even more acute,” the authors wrote.

Despite the alarming depletion, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell insisted that the US military “has everything it needs to execute at the time and place of the President’s choosing,” calling concerns over magazine depth “ill-informed and dishonorable.”

His claims stand in stark contrast to President Donald Trump’s recent request for emergency missile funding.

The staggering math of US missile depletion exposes the true cost of the US-Israeli war of terrorism on Iran. Prior to the war, senior military leaders, including Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine, had warned Trump that a protracted war would devastate stockpiles.

Democrats on Capitol Hill have also voiced alarm. “At some point, this becomes a math problem,” said Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly. “How can we resupply air defense munitions?”

The CSIS analysis notes that the Trump administration’s recent agreements with arms contractors to quadruple “exquisite class” weaponry will take years to materialize.

Pentagon comptroller Jules Hurst announced plans for expanded multi-year contracts as part of Trump’s $1.5 trillion military budget request, but analysts warn that even under optimistic scenarios, restoring depleted arsenals after the savage campaign against Iran will require many years.


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