As the war with Iran drags on, a report said the U.S. military's stock of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) interceptor missiles has been depleted to the bottom.
On the 4th, CNN in the United States, citing multiple sources familiar with the matter, reported that the U.S. military's THAAD interceptor missile inventory has fallen to one-fifth of its prewar level. Stocks of Patriot interceptors were also said to have been roughly halved compared with before the Iran war.
According to CNN, warnings are mounting among senior U.S. commanders that missile stocks are dangerously low. One source said the U.S. Army effectively used all of its precision long-range surface-to-air missiles in this conflict. Reserves of Tomahawk long-range cruise missiles were also reportedly cut by nearly half.
Earlier, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) recently assessed that the U.S. military's interceptor missile stock was only 40% of its pre-Iran war level. According to CSIS, as of Feb. 27, just before the war began, the U.S. military had 2,330 Patriots and 452 THAADs, but as of on the 27th of last month, Patriot stocks had fallen to 759–827 and THAADs to 234–278.
Replenishment is proceeding more slowly than the pace of depletion. According to CNN, the Ministry of National Defense is receiving only about 15 Tomahawks and about 20 Patriots each month.
The shortage of weapons stockpiles is also acting as a constraint on U.S. President Donald Trump's military response to Iran. Dan Caine, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, is said to have conveyed concerns about the weapons shortfall to Trump at a White House meeting on the 24th of last month, and Trump at the time held off on an attack on Iran.
Gulf states are also closely watching the U.S. weapons shortfall. CNN reported that many Gulf countries rely on U.S. air defense systems and that concerns are growing over whether they can sufficiently fend off Iran's retaliatory strikes in the event of an escalation due to a lack of air defense capability.