The Military Cost of the Iran War: U.S. Weapons Stockpiles Dramatically Depleted

A new report by the U.S. Department of Defense inspector general reveals the extent of the strain on the American military during the war with Iran, NBC reported overnight Monday into Tuesday. The document, which examines the period from April 1 through June 30, found that the war "led to strategic shortages in stockpiles and exposed bottlenecks in the industrial base when it came to replenishing ammunition inventories." Experts estimate that restoring supplies of advanced missiles and defensive interceptors to their prewar levels could take about three years.

According to the report, the total cost of the war with Iran for the United States came to approximately $33.4 billion, before accounting for the costs of repairing damaged facilities. Of that amount, $22.3 billion was allocated for munitions, $3.7 billion was recorded for lost equipment, and an additional $7.4 billion was attributed to other expenses.

The damage was also evident at U.S. bases in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman, and Jordan, where hundreds of buildings and infrastructure sites were damaged or destroyed. Drone and ballistic missile attacks against the naval base in Bahrain forced Central Command to shift supply lines to alternative hubs, including Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean.

The aircraft fleet also took a significant hit: Dozens of planes and drones were damaged or destroyed, including as many as 30 MQ-9 Reaper drones, each estimated to cost around $30 million. Seven KC-135 refueling aircraft were damaged or destroyed, five of them by Iranian munitions while parked in Saudi Arabia.

The State Department also reported an additional $113 million in expenses, nearly $80 million of it for emergency and evacuation needs. Since the first U.S. and Israeli strikes in Iran on February 28, approximately 9,000 Americans have been evacuated, most of them from Israel, followed by Iraq and Jordan.

During the same period, the United States carried out more than $44 billion in military sales, both emergency and non-emergency. Most of the deals were with Saudi Arabia, while Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and Israel also received deals worth billions.

The Pentagon, meanwhile, rejects claims of ammunition shortages and stresses that the military has all the weapons it needs. U.S. President Donald Trump wrote on Monday that the United States is now producing more advanced weapons than ever before and that they are being delivered daily to its forces in the Middle East and beyond.