America's latest war has come with a perhaps unanticipated side effect: a serious dent in the US weapons cupboard. In the two months since the conflict in Iran began, US forces have used roughly 1,100 JASSM-ER stealth cruise missiles—with not much more than that figure left in stock—as well as more than 1,000 Tomahawk missiles, and upward of 1,200 Patriot interceptors, each costing millions, reports the New York Times. Independent estimates put the war's price tag at $28 billion to $35 billion so far, close to $1 billion a day, with $5.6 billion in munitions fired in the first 48 hours alone.
To keep the Iran fight supplied, the Pentagon has been pulling missiles, air defense systems, and other hardware from command centers in Europe and Asia, leaving those regions less prepared against Russia and China, according to internal assessments and congressional officials. In addition, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says that US weapons shipments to Ukraine are still happening as well amid the Middle East turmoil, per the AP. US officials are especially concerned that the US wouldn't be able to carry out contingency plans should China choose to invade Taiwan in the near future, they tell the Wall Street Journal.
Defense planners warn it will take years to rebuild certain arsenals at current production rates, even as long-term deals with contractors to ramp up manufacturing remain unfunded, per the Times. The White House disputes that US readiness is at risk, calling the premise "false" and insisting stockpiles are more than adequate. But officials across the military acknowledge one hard limit, as one spokesperson for the head of the US Indo-Pacific Command puts it: "There are finite limits to the magazine."
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