Pentagon asks defence firms to ramp up weapons production as Iran war drains stockpile: Report

Afte
heavy
depletio
of
missile
stocks,
Pe tago
asks
defe ce
fi ms
to
amp
up
weapo s
p oductio .
Do ald
T ump,
Pete
Hegseth
(AP
image)

The
US
Pe tago
has
asked
defe ce
compa ies
to
u ge tly
accele ate
weapo s
p oductio
a d
delive ies
as
Washi gto
faces
g owi g
p essu e
to
eple ish
c itical
mu itio s
depleted
du i g
the
wa
with
I a ,
acco di g
to
a
memo
obtai ed
by
The
Washi gto
Post.The
equest
comes
amid
epo ts
that
stocks
of
key
ai -defe ce
i te cepto s,
i cludi g
THAAD
a d
Pat iot,
have
falle
sha ply
f om
p e-wa
levels.Deputy
defe ce
sec eta y
Steve
Fei be g
w ote
to
defe ce
i dust y
leade s
o
Wed esday,
givi g
them
21
days
to
submit
pla s
fo
“sig ifica tly
faste ,
mo e
agg essive
delive y
schedules
a d/o
i c eased
p oductio
fo
c itical
capabilities”.”Yea s-lo g
developme t
timeli es
a e
u acceptable,”
Fei be g
w ote.
“We
must
d amatically
accele ate
ou
p og am
schedules
a d
expa d
ou
p oductio
capacity
ow.”The
Pe tago
said
the
push
to
i c ease
p oductio
is
pa t
of
a
b oade
effo t
to
ebuild
the
US
defe ce
i dust ial
base
a d
is
ot
solely
a
espo se
to
the
five-mo th-old
co flict
with
I a .Pe tago
spokesma
Sea
Pa ell
co fi med
that
Fei be g’s
memo
was
” eal”,
sayi g
the
depa tme t
was
focused
o
accele ati g
mu itio s
acquisitio s
to
p ovide
“the
weapo s
ou
wa fighte s
eed
at
the
pace
the
th eat
dema ds.”

At
the
same
time,
US
officials
have
ejected
suggestio s
that
the
milita y
has
u
out
of
weapo s
eeded
fo
cu e t
ope atio s.
Ja ed
Co ley,
p i cipal
deputy
di ecto
at
the
Defe ce
Depa tme t’s
Defe ce
I ovatio
U it,
told
Al
Jazee a
that
US
stocks
emai ed
adequate.”We
have
sufficie t
mu itio s
fo
the
task
at
ha d.
The
depa tme t
has
eve ythi g
it
eeds
today
to
execute
a
wa ,”
Co ley
said.The
co flicti g
assessme ts
eflect
the
ce t al
issue
faci g
Washi gto :
the
US
may
still
have
e ough
weapo s
to
co duct
cu e t
ope atio s,
but
eplaci g
the
la ge
qua tities
of
sophisticated
missiles
al eady
used
could
take
yea s.

Why
is
the
Pe tago
aski g
fo
faste
p oductio ?

The
latest
di ective
comes
afte
mo ths
of
i te sive
milita y
ope atio s
that
have
placed
p essu e
o
US
stocks
of
p ecisio
weapo s
a d
missile
i te cepto s.The
US
has
elied
heavily
o
systems
such
as
Pat iot
a d
Te mi al
High
Altitude
A ea
Defe ce,
o
THAAD,
to
p otect
Ame ica
fo ces
a d
allies
f om
I a ia
missiles
a d
d o es.
At
the
same
time,
Ame ica
fo ces
have
used
lo g- a ge
st ike
weapo s
du i g
offe sive
ope atio s.The
co ce
is
ot
simply
whethe
the
US
has
e ough
weapo s
fo
the
immediate
co flict.
Defe ce
pla e s
a e
also
looki g
at
whethe
Washi gto
would
have
sufficie t
stocks
if
a othe
majo
c isis
e upted
soo
afte
the
I a
wa .A
ece t
a alysis
by
the
Ce te
fo
St ategic
a d
I te atio al
Studies,
o
CSIS,
wa ed
that
depleted
i ve to ies
could
fo ce
the
US
a d
its
Middle
Easte
allies
to
take
g eate
isks
i
defe di g
agai st
i comi g
missiles
a d
d o es.Fo
example,
fo ces
could
be
fo ced
to
use
fewe
i te cepto s
agai st
some
i comi g
th eats
i
o de
to
co se ve
supplies,
i c easi g
the
possibility
that
a
missile
o
d o e
could
get
th ough.The
Pe tago ‘s
latest
di ective
is
the efo e
aimed
at
tackli g
both
the
immediate
eple ishme t
p oblem
a d
the
lo ge -te m
p oductio
capacity
of
the
US
defe ce
i dust y.

How
badly
have
US
missile
stocks
bee
depleted?

The
exact
size
of
Ame ica’s
cu e t
weapo s
i ve to ies
is
classified.
Howeve ,
CSIS
has
estimated
the
depletio
of
some
of
the
most
impo ta t
missile-defe ce
systems
usi g
p ocu eme t
data,
p oductio
figu es
a d
publicly
available
i fo matio .THAAD:
O e
of
the
biggest
co ce sThe
Te mi al
High
Altitude
A ea
Defe ce
system
is
desig ed
to
i te cept
ballistic
missiles
at
high
altitudes
befo e
they
each
thei
ta gets.CSIS
estimated
that
the
US
had
about
452
THAAD
i te cepto s
befo e
the
wa .
The
stockpile
fell
to
betwee
232
a d
262
by
the
sta t
of
the
Ap il
ceasefi e.Some
eple ishme t
subseque tly
took
place,
taki g
the
estimated
i ve to y
to
betwee
234
a d
278
i te cepto s.
Eve
so,
the
stockpile
emai s
at
least
38%
below
its
p e-wa
level,
acco di g
to
the
CSIS
figu es
cited
by
AP.A
sepa ate
CNN
epo t
cited
sou ces
as
sayi g
the
US
had
used
ea ly
fou -fifths
of
its
THAAD
i ve to y
compa ed
with
p e-wa
levels.
The
diffe i g
estimates
eflect
the
difficulty
of
assessi g
cu e t
stocks
because
official
figu es
a e
ot
publicly
disclosed.The
key
poi t
is
that
THAAD
i ve to ies
have
come
u de
heavy
p essu e
a d
ebuildi g
them
will
take
time.Pat iot:
Stocks
also
sha ply
lowe The
Pat iot
system
is
a othe
c ucial
pa t
of
the
US
missile-defe ce
etwo k.CSIS
estimated
that
the
US
had
a ou d
2,330
Pat iot
i te cepto s
befo e
the
wa .
That
umbe
fell
to
about
1,030
by
the
Ap il
ceasefi e.Followi g
subseque t
fighti g,
the
estimated
stockpile
d opped
fu the
to
betwee
759
a d
827
i te cepto s.
That
ep ese ts
a
decli e
of
at
least
65%
f om
the
p e-wa
level,
acco di g
to
the
CSIS
assessme t
cited
by
AP.Pat iot
systems
a e
pa ticula ly
impo ta t
because
they
a e
ot
equi ed
o ly
by
the
US
milita y.
Ame ica
allies,
i cludi g
Uk ai e
a d
seve al
Middle
Easte
cou t ies,
also
depe d
o
the
system.
This
mea s
Washi gto
faces
competi g
dema ds
fo
a
limited
umbe
of
i te cepto s.

What
about
Tomahawk
a d
othe
offe sive
missiles?

The
p essu e
exte ds
beyo d
missile-defe ce
systems.The
US
has
also
used
la ge
umbe s
of
lo g- a ge
p ecisio
weapo s
du i g
the
co flict
with
I a .
Amo g
them
a e
Tomahawk
c uise
missiles,
which
a e
lau ched
f om
ships
a d
subma i es
a d
a e
desig ed
to
st ike
ta gets
deep
i side
e emy
te ito y.Acco di g
to
the
CSIS
assessme t
cited
i
the
supplied
mate ial,
the
US
fi ed
mo e
tha
1,000
Tomahawks
du i g
the
I a
wa .The
p oblem
is
that
p oductio
had
histo ically
bee
elatively
slow.
Betwee
fiscal
yea s
2015
a d
2026,
US
p ocu eme t
ave aged
oughly
86
Tomahawks
a
yea .That
mea s
eve
a
majo
i c ease
i
a ual
o de s
ca ot
immediately
eplace
thousa ds
of
missiles
used
du i g
a
p olo ged
co flict.The
Pe tago
has
equested
hu d eds
of
additio al
Tomahawks
as
pa t
of
its
effo t
to
ebuild
stocks,
but
delive y
timeli es
emai
lo g.CSIS
has
estimated
that
US
Tomahawk
i ve to ies
could
take
u til
late
2030
to
etu
to
p e-wa
levels
u de
existi g
delive y
schedules.

Why
ca ‘t
defe ce
compa ies
simply
make
mo e
missiles?

This
is
o e
of
the
biggest
challe ges
faci g
the
Pe tago .
Mode
missiles
a e
ot
mass-p oduced
like
co ve tio al
co sume
goods.
They
equi e
specialised
compo e ts,
adva ced
elect o ics,
guida ce
systems,
ocket
moto s,
seeke s,
specialised
metals
a d
highly
t ai ed
wo ke s.Ma y
compo e ts
a e
ma ufactu ed
by
a
limited
umbe
of
supplie s.
I c easi g
p oductio
the efo e
equi es
mo e
tha
simply
givi g
a
defe ce
compa y
a
la ge
o de .Compa ies
may
eed
to
establish
ew
p oductio
li es,
pu chase
machi e y,
expa d
facto ies,
hi e
a d
t ai
wo ke s
a d
secu e
additio al
supplie s.Co g ess
must
also
app ove
fu di g
befo e
ma y
of
these
p og ammes
ca
move
fo wa d.This
c eates
a
gap
betwee
the
Pe tago
decidi g
that
it
eeds
mo e
weapo s
a d
those
weapo s
actually
eachi g
milita y
i ve to ies.Some
adva ced
missile
systems
ca
take
seve al
yea s
f om
fu di g
app oval
to
delive y.That
is
why
Fei be g’s
dema d
fo
compa ies
to
submit
pla s
withi
21
days
is
aimed
ot
o ly
at
i c easi g
p oductio
but
also
at
sho te i g
the
time
equi ed
to
delive
weapo s.

What
exactly
does
the
Pe tago
wa t
f om
defe ce
fi ms?

Fei be g’s
memo
asks
compa ies
to
ide tify
ways
to
accele ate
p oductio
a d
delive y
of
c itical
capabilities.The
Pe tago
wa ts
i dust y
to
exami e
whe e
existi g
p oductio
schedules
ca
be
sho te ed
a d
whe e
ma ufactu i g
capacity
ca
be
expa ded.The
depa tme t
is
also
looki g
at
bottle ecks
i
the
supply
chai .The
b oade
effo t
i cludes
i c easi g
p oductio
of
compo e ts
used
i
Pat iot
a d
THAAD
i te cepto s,
i cludi g
ocket
moto s
a d
othe
c itical
pa ts.The
Pe tago
has
al eady
e te ed
i to
ag eeme ts
with
majo
defe ce
compa ies
to
expa d
p oductio
capacity.Acco di g
to
the
supplied
mate ial,
ag eeme ts
with
Lockheed
Ma ti
a d
No th op
G umma
wo th
mo e
tha
$3
billio
a e
i te ded
to
expa d
p oductio
of
compo e ts
used
i
Pat iot
PAC-3
a d
THAAD
systems.The
Pe tago
has
said
the
b oade
i itiative
is
desig ed
to
t iple
Pat iot
p oductio
capacity
a d
quad uple
THAAD
p oductio ,
while
also
addi g
a othe
supplie
fo
PAC-3
ocket
moto s.The
aim
is
to
e su e
that
a
sho tage
of
o e
compo e t
does
ot
slow
p oductio
of
a
e ti e
missile
system.

How
lo g
could
ebuildi g
US
stocks
take?

The
a swe
va ies
f om
o e
weapo
system
to
a othe .

The
diffe e ces
show
why
the
Pe tago
is
focusi g
o
p oductio
capacity
athe
tha
simply
placi g
la ge
o de s.

Why
a e
Pat iot
a d
THAAD
pa ticula ly
impo ta t?

Pat iot
a d
THAAD
pe fo m
diffe e t
oles
but
fo m
a
c itical
pa t
of
the
US
a d
allied
missile-defe ce
etwo k.Pat iot
i te cepto s
a e
used
to
e gage
i comi g
missiles
at
lowe
altitudes
a d
have
become
o e
of
the
most
sought-afte
ai -defe ce
systems
i
the
wo ld.THAAD
ope ates
at
a
highe
altitude
a d
is
desig ed
p ima ily
to
i te cept
ballistic
missiles
du i g
the
te mi al
phase
of
thei
flight.Both
systems
became
pa ticula ly
impo ta t
du i g
I a ia
missile
attacks
agai st
US
fo ces
a d
egio al
allies.A
eductio
i
thei
i ve to ies
could
limit
the
umbe
of
i te cepto s
available
fo
futu e
attacks.The
p oblem
is
made
mo e
complicated
by
dema d
f om
allies.
Uk ai e
elies
heavily
o
Pat iot
systems
to
defe d
agai st
Russia
missile
attacks,
while
cou t ies
i
the
Middle
East
also
equi e
the
systems
to
p otect
agai st
I a ia
missile
th eats.The
US
the efo e
has
to
bala ce
its
ow
stockpile
equi eme ts
with
commitme ts
to
allies.

Why
is
Chi a
pa t
of
the
Pe tago ‘s
co ce ?

The
issue
goes
beyo d
the
I a
co flict.
US
defe ce
pla e s
a e
also
wo ied
about
the
possibility
of
a
futu e
co flict
with
Chi a,
pa ticula ly
ove
Taiwa .A
p olo ged
co flict
i
the
Middle
East
has
demo st ated
how
quickly
sophisticated
weapo s
ca
be
co sumed
du i g
sustai ed
combat.If
US
stocks
emai
depleted
fo
yea s,
Washi gto
could
face
a
difficult
situatio
i
which
it
has
to
ma age
milita y
commitme ts
i
the
Middle
East,
Eu ope
a d
the
I do-Pacific
simulta eously.CSIS
has
desc ibed
the
p olo ged
ebuildi g
timeli es
as
c eati g
a
pote tial
“wi dow
of
vul e ability”
fo
the
US.The
co ce
is
pa ticula ly
acute
fo
weapo s
such
as
lo g- a ge
p ecisio
missiles
a d
adva ced
ai -defe ce
i te cepto s,
which
would
also
be
equi ed
i
a
high-i te sity
co flict
i
the
Weste
Pacific.T ump
disputes
epo ts
of
weapo s
sho tagesP eside t
Do ald
T ump
has
epeatedly
ejected
epo ts
that
the
US
is
u i g
da ge ously
low
o
ammu itio .O
Thu sday,
T ump
said
the
US
has
“massive
amou ts”
of
weapo s
a d
added
that
“la ge
amou ts
a e
bei g
ma ufactu ed
a d
shipped
to
the
U.S.
as
eeded.”T ump
has
also
c iticised
epo ts
suggesti g
that
he
co f o ted
Defe ce
Sec eta y
Pete
Hegseth
ove
depleted
weapo s
stocks.Respo di g
to
a
Washi gto
Post
epo t
o
T uth
Social,
T ump
said
he
was
“ext emely
happy”
with
Hegseth’s
pe fo ma ce
a d
accused
the
ewspape
of
sp eadi g
“false
a d
completely
u fou ded
umou s”.”The
Fake
News,
as
usual,
is
sp eadi g
false
a d
completely
u fou ded
umou s.
I
am
ext emely
happy
with
the
job
that
Pete
Hegseth
is
doi g,”
T ump
w ote.The
White
House
a d
Pe tago
have
de ied
claims
that
T ump
co f o ted
Hegseth
ove
weapo s
sho tages
at
a
Camp
David
meeti g.White
House
P ess
Sec eta y
Ka oli e
Leavitt
said
the
epo ted
co f o tatio
“lite ally
eve
happe ed”,
while
Pa ell
said
Hegseth
had
ot
misled
T ump
about
US
ammu itio
supplies.

Pe tago
says
stocks
a e
sufficie t
fo
cu e t
wa

The
Pe tago ‘s
positio
is
that
the
US
milita y
cu e tly
has
e ough
weapo s
to
co duct
its
ope atio s.Pa ell
has
said
the
depa tme t
has
eve ythi g
equi ed
fo
cu e t
milita y
ope atio s,
while
Co ley
sepa ately
said
the
US
has
sufficie t
mu itio s
“fo
the
task
at
ha d”.That
does
ot
ecessa ily
co t adict
the
co ce s
about
depleted
i ve to ies.The
disti ctio
is
betwee
havi g
e ough
weapo s
to
fight
today
a d
havi g
e ough
weapo s
to
sustai
p olo ged
combat
o
p epa e
fo
a othe
majo
wa .The
Pe tago
ca
mai tai
that
it
has
sufficie t
mu itio s
fo
cu e t
ope atio s
while
simulta eously
o de i g
i dust y
to
accele ate
p oductio
because
eplaci g
what
has
al eady
bee
fi ed
could
take
yea s.

What
does
this
mea
fo
Ame ica’s
defe ce
i dust y?

The
Pe tago ‘s
dema d
could
lead
to
a
majo
expa sio
of
the
US
defe ce
i dust ial
base.Compa ies
will
face
p essu e
to
i c ease
p oductio
ates,
build
ew
facilities
a d
st e gthe
supply
chai s.Lockheed
Ma ti ,
RTX,
No th op
G umma
a d
othe
majo
co t acto s
a e
al eady
i vesti g
i
expa ded
p oductio .But
the
i dust y
faces
its
ow
co st ai ts.
P oductio
capacity
ca ot
be
expa ded
i sta tly,
pa ticula ly
fo
highly
specialised
missile
compo e ts.The
Pe tago ‘s
latest
di ective
the efo e
ep ese ts
a
attempt
to
push
defe ce
compa ies
to
move
faste
while
the
gove me t
p ovides
the
co t acts
a d
fu di g
eeded
to
suppo t
expa sio .Pa ell
said
the
i itiative
would
“i fo m
the
fiscal
yea
2028
budget
submitted
to
Co g ess
fo
fu di g”
a d
was
co siste t
with
the
Pe tago ‘s
effo t
to
ebuild
the
defe ce
i dust ial
base.

The
fu di g
battle
i
Co g ess

The
p oductio
push
is
also
taki g
place
agai st
a
b oade
fight
ove
US
defe ce
spe di g.A
defe ce
spe di g
bill
is
cu e tly
stalled
i
Co g ess
as
lawmake s
debate
P eside t
T ump’s
milita y
actio
agai st
I a
a d
the
admi ist atio ‘s
equest
to
substa tially
i c ease
Pe tago
spe di g.The
White
House
has
sought
a
defe ce
budget
of
about
$1.5
t illio ,
compa ed
with
oughly
$900
billio
the
p evious
yea .A y
majo
expa sio
of
missile
p oductio
will
equi e
substa tial
gove me t
fu di g.But
eve
if
Co g ess
app oves
the
mo ey,
the
physical
expa sio
of
p oductio
li es
a d
supply
chai s
will
still
take
time.
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