War Secretary Pete Hegseth expressed frustration with comments and reports that the department’s stockpiles of critical munitions are dangerously low due to the Iran war.
“I take issue with the characterization that munitions are depleted in a public forum. That’s not true,” he told lawmakers in a Tuesday morning hearing before a House Appropriations subcommittee. “Ultimately, we have all the munitions needed to execute what we need to execute, and we’re going to ensure that we supercharge that in the future.”
Recommended Stories
The levels of U.S. stockpiles of critical munitions have long been a subject of debate, first when it came to American aid to Ukraine. It has come back into the limelight with the U.S. war in Iran, where the U.S. has expended countless munitions.
The Navy expended 850 Tomahawk missiles during the first month of the Iran war, the Washington Post reported about 10 days before the ceasefire commenced, making the total number likely much higher. For comparison, the military procured 58 of these missiles last year for $257 million, while this year’s request represents a 1,200% increase.
The Hegseth Pentagon has emphasized the need for the defense industrial base’s capacity to grow exponentially in an effort that predates the war in Iran.
“I think first of all, the munitions issue has been foolishly and unhelpfully overstated. We know exactly what we have. We have plenty of what we need. And the reason we’re accelerating a lot of this is because the department’s been static in how it does this kind of business, not to mention the amount that was given to Ukraine for years and years,” he said.
Hegseth continued: “So, we are getting, after changing that dynamic, so that we’re not getting 100 more of something. But companies are investing, so there’s new plants, so you’re getting 2 times, 3 times, 4 times of those munition in future years, because that’s what we need.”
In a hearing last month, Hegseth acknowledged that it could take months or years to rebuild and expand U.S. stockpiles.
The department has already agreed to increases in production with multiple defense companies that produce the weapons the U.S. has been expending. In February, Raytheon announced agreements that included producing more Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles, Standard Missile-3, SM-6, and Tomahawk missiles. In January, the Pentagon announced a deal with Lockheed Martin to quadruple the number of THAAD interceptor production from 96 to 400 annually.
The Pentagon’s Munitions Acceleration Council has identified 14 legacy and emerging munitions that are a part of its plan to ramp up production: Patriot Advanced Capability-3 missile segment enhancement interceptors; terminal high altitude air defense interceptors; Standard Missile-3 IIA; SM-6; SM-3 Block IB, Tomahawk land attack missile; joint advanced tactical missile; low-cost cruise missile; advanced medium-range air-to-air missile; maritime strike tomahawk; joint air-to-surface standoff missile-extended range; long range anti-ship missile; low-cost hypersonic strike weapons; and precision strike missile increment 1.
TRUMP STUCK IN IRAN-SHAPED ‘CUL-DE-SAC’
The department’s comptroller, Jay Hurst III, told lawmakers during Tuesday’s hearing that the projection for the cost of the war is currently up to $29 billion. Excluding the cost of military construction, which is still unclear, the war has cost roughly $24 billion.
On April 29, he said during an earlier congressional hearing that the conflict has cost $25 billion.
