President Donald Trump has denied reports that the US is suffering a munitions shortage and vowed in a social media post on Thursday that his administration would seek "long term jail sentences" for those suspected of leaking information. Trump said the US has “massive amounts” of munitions and that more were being manufactured and shipped as needed.
"The U.S. has massive amounts of 'munitions,' especially of certain types," Trump posted on Thursday morning. "Additionally, large amounts are being manufactured and shipped to the US as needed."
Trump and the Pentagon are facing mounting questions about the state of the military's arsenal as the war with Iran marks its sixth month. The US and Iran have continued to trade strikes, despite multiple pauses in fighting, and a deal to fully end hostilities remains elusive.
As the US pauses the war with Iran, is Trump really running out of weapons?
Against that backdrop, the administration has sought to assure Americans that missile stockpiles remain robust, even after vast quantities of difficult-to-manufacture weapons were used during the combat operation known as Operation Epic Fury and the tit-for-tat strikes since.
CBS News, the BBC's US partner, reported the US has gone through much of its global stockpile of long-range precision missiles during the war, citing two unnamed sources with direct knowledge of the subject. Meanwhile, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday evening that Trump had confronted Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth last week over a possible weapons shortfall, also citing unnamed sources. The BBC has not confirmed the report.
"The 'leakers' of these treasonous statements are being hunted down," Trump said in the post on Truth Social. "Long term jail sentences will be sought!"
"I really believe their fake 'reporting' is treasonous!"
"I am extremely happy with the job that Pete Hegseth is doing," he also posted.
He directly addressed the Washington Post's story in a later post, saying: "I really believe their fake 'reporting' is treasonous!"
Precise information on US missile stocks remains classified. Since becoming secretary, Hegseth has sought to put in place strict controls limiting the information that reporters can gather from the Pentagon, as well.
Using publicly available data, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a national security think tank, estimated that by the end of July, the US had between 759 and 827 Patriot missiles left - about a third of the 2,330 available before the conflict began. It also estimates the US has now used around 60% of terminal high altitude area defense (THAAD) missiles, which are deployed to intercept strikes, Mark Cancian, a retired Marine Corps colonel and senior adviser at CSIS, said on Wednesday.
The US is facing demand for its weapons beyond the conflict with Iran, which could also put a strain on supplies. It has given Ukraine significant numbers of Patriot missiles since Russia invaded in 2022, but as US stocks shrink Cancian expects the Pentagon will hold onto them. At a cabinet meeting on Friday, Trump told reporters that granting Ukraine's recent request for additional Patriot missiles would be a "big step", but the two countries were "still talking about" it.
Many modern weapons have long funding, order, production, and delivery timelines, making it hard to swiftly replace munitions once they are used.
The administration has consistently stated the US has enough in its stockpile. Trump told the Wall Street Journal last month:
"We have far more munitions than anyone in the world, and far more than we need."
Hegseth, meanwhile, called reports of a stockpile shortage a "manufactured story" on a 14 June appearance on CBS' Face the Nation.
But the administration has also indicated it is ramping up production, with Hegseth saying the US was working quickly to manufacture more weapons. Last month, he asked the US Senate for emergency funds totalling $87bn (£68bn) to pay service members and "rapidly replenish equipment and munitions."
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