Renewed Iran war raises US missile supply concerns

Washington (United States) (AFP) – Tehran’s forces have carried out frequent missile and drone attacks in the Middle East since the breakdown of the US-Iran ceasefire, raising renewed concerns about Washington’s supply of the weapons needed to intercept them.

Highlighting the issue, the US military said it shot down multiple ballistic missiles fired by Tehran in an “attempted surprise attack” this week, following a deadly Iranian strike on American troops in Jordan earlier this month.

Some lawmakers have raised questions about whether the United States has sufficient munitions since early in the war, which began with US-Israeli strikes in late February before the fighting largely halted under an April ceasefire, only to resume in recent weeks.

“We have depleted our interceptors… which are, obviously, necessary to protect American troops,” US Senator Chris Van Hollen said Sunday on ABC’s “This Week.”

“We are depleting these every day, despite the fact that we could face other potential conflicts around the world,” the Democrat added.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has previously dismissed fears about Washington’s weapons supplies, and the US military has not publicly released details about how many interceptors it has.

But US media outlets have reported that General Dan Caine, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, has raised concerns about falling US interceptor supplies.

President Donald Trump was asked about the issue on Monday and said that while stocks are sufficient, he wants more.

“We have a lot of ammunition, different types,” Trump told journalists aboard Air Force One, while adding: “For some of the more sophisticated stuff, we’d certainly like to have more.”

Trump took aim at Joe Biden, saying “so much was given to Ukraine” by the Democratic president, who sought to help Kyiv’s forces defend against repeated Russian missile and drone attacks.

…