Trump angered by disclosures on dwindling US munitions at critical phase of Iran conflict - report

The anger in the Oval Office

President Donald Trump has privately expressed frustration that information about shrinking US munitions stockpiles has become public, according to CNN, which cited senior US officials. The disclosures make the United States appear weak, Trump argued, at a time when he is threatening Iran with further military action. The president raised the issue during a cabinet meeting at Camp David last week, the report said, and his anger was centered on the timing of the disclosures rather than the substance, as he had known for months about possible shortages of key missiles.

Trump’s public response was emphatic. In a Truth Social post on August 6, he wrote that the US has “massive amounts of munitions,” adding that claims of any shortage were fabricated. He later threatened “long-term jail sentences” for anyone responsible for releasing the information, and in the Oval Office acknowledged that certain munitions were in “tighter” supply, while insisting the US has a “virtual unlimited supply” of less advanced weapons.

His frustration has not been directed at Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, according to White House officials. Trump said he was “extremely happy with the job that Pete Hegseth is doing,” and he denied a Washington Post report that he believed Hegseth had misled him about depleted stockpiles. Instead, Trump has instructed the Justice Department to identify individuals inside the administration who disclosed the information, describing them as “treasonous,” according to reports.

The Wall Street Journal, citing sources, reported that media leaks have been troubling Trump for several weeks and that the negative headlines are “driving him crazy.” The president believes reports about shortages could embolden Tehran and weaken Washington’s position, the newspaper said. Trump has ordered a new internal investigation into the leaks. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told the Journal that anyone leaking classified military information “is betraying that trust and breaking federal law, and should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

The reports that stoked the fire

The anger stems from a series of news reports that detailed the extent of US munitions use during the five-month war with Iran. A Reuters report on August 4 found that the US Army had used up “virtually all” of its stockpile of highly accurate long-range missiles. The Washington Post reported that in the first month of the conflict, the US fired more than 850 Tomahawk cruise missiles, over 1,000 Terminal High Altitude Area Defense missiles, and used at least 1,300 tactical ballistic missiles. Reuters also reported that between February and July the US used around 65% of its Patriot interceptors.

A study from the Center for Strategic and International Studies reported that by May, 39 days into the conflict, the US had used over a thousand Tomahawk missiles and production rates were unlikely to keep pace. CBS News reported that US military operations against Iran have exhausted the bulk of the Pentagon’s global stockpile of long-range missiles.

Sources told CNN that the US used up much of its stockpile of highly accurate long-range missiles during the war, specifically Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) and Precision Strike Missiles (PrSM), which cost more than $1 million each. The depletion of these precision weapons means Trump may have to rely more on riskier, piloted bombing missions if he relaunches large-scale attacks on Iran, according to sources cited by the outlet.

The official denial

Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell told the Wall Street Journal that “claims of US munitions shortages are false.” He added that “America’s military remains the most powerful fighting force on earth. We have everything required to strike at the time and place of the President’s choosing.”

The White House, when asked for comment on the stockpile data, issued a statement from Trump saying the US had “far more munitions than anyone in the world” and “far more than we need,” Reuters reported. Trump said “our defense companies are, at this moment, making more munitions than they have ever made before, in addition to expanding their plants and equipment at record levels.”

The Pentagon has nonetheless taken steps to accelerate production. Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg ordered defense industry leaders to prepare plans to escalate production and delivery of weapons, with a 21-day deadline. Feinberg wrote that “years-long development cycles are not acceptable. We must dramatically accelerate our program schedules and expand our production capacity now.” On August 17, the Pentagon moved to lift annual production of Tomahawk missiles from around 60 to over 1,000 via a $22.9 billion, seven-year contract to Raytheon.

Allies feel the strain

The Iran war is straining US munitions stockpiles, and that is causing concern in Canberra as Australia scrambles to prepare itself for potential conflict in the Indo-Pacific, according to a report by POLITICO. Australia’s defense plans depend heavily on US-made weapons, and the prospect of the US needing to replenish its own stockpiles at the expense of foreign orders puts pressure on allies to revive their own missile industries.

Charles Edel, Australia chair for CSIS, warned that the Iran war was “putting an enormous strain” on US stockpiles and was “likely extending the timeline to replenish them.” He told POLITICO that “this will put missile deliveries to allies like Australia at a growing risk of delay — potentially exposing gaps in their defenses.”

Coalition defense spokesperson James Paterson said conflicts in Ukraine, Gaza, and Iran have caused a global shortage and a “very long queue to be resupplied.” He warned that if a high-intensity conflict broke out in the Indo-Pacific, Australia would be “dangerously exposed” with limited stocks of munitions for strike and interceptors for air and missile defense, or the ability to manufacture them at scale.

Former US military officials are urging Canberra to prepare for a possible shortage of US weapons if a conflict over Taiwan spreads to Australia, and to accelerate development of a domestic industry producing military underwater drones. Mark Montgomery, former director of operations at US Pacific Command, argued that this is a great opportunity for Australia to become a source of asymmetric weapons development. Administration officials worry that a shortfall in missiles needed to counter potential Chinese aggression against Taiwan may undermine an adequate defense of the island, with Hegseth warning of possible Chinese aggression as early as 2027.

Australia has an order for roughly 220 American-made Tomahawk missiles, and on August 6 announced a $736 million acquisition of long-range AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missiles, with delivery not due until 2033. The country’s domestic munitions industry stagnated following the Cold War, entering into “strategic drift and complacency,” according to Jennifer Parker. Australia’s Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance Enterprise plans two guided-missile factories by 2029 and an artillery ammunition factory by 2030, while Kongsberg Defence Australia is developing a missile factory at Newcastle Airport, with production expected by the end of 2027.

A spokesperson for Defense Minister Richard Marles declined to comment on fears of delayed orders but said, “we are making missiles in Australia for the first time since the early 1970s.”