Artillery fire in the Middle East resumes, but a report points out that the US military's ammunition inventory is facing threats!
[Artillery fire in the Middle East resumes, but a report points out that the US military’s ammunition inventory is facing threats! ] The United States restarted military operations against Iran last week, and the ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran has actually ended, casting a shadow over the global market. At the same time, a professional report pointed out that the United States' stockpile of key weapons is facing serious shortages.
The United States restarted military operations against Iran last week, and the ceasefire agreement between the United States and Iran has actually ended, casting a shadow over global markets. At the same time, a professional report pointed out that the United States' stockpile of key weapons is facing serious shortages. According to previous reports, in the early stages of "Operation Epic Fury" against Iran, that is, before the United States and Iran reached a phased ceasefire, it had consumed thousands of key missiles used for long-range precision strikes and defense against enemy air strikes and missile attacks. An analysis report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies also showed that as of late April, the US military had launched at least half of its inventory of THAAD ballistic missiles, nearly half of its Patriot air defense missiles, and about 30% of its Tomahawk attack missiles. Subsequently, the ceasefire agreement reached by the two countries in June gave the United States ammunition inventory a temporary respite, but Mark Cancian, a retired Marine Corps colonel and defense analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank, warned that if the U.S.-Iran conflict continues at the pace of the past five days, the U.S. arms inventory will be reduced to a more worrying level. Cancian noted that replenishment of critical missiles has been slow. According to the delivery plan for this fiscal year, the U.S. Department of Defense will receive approximately 15 new Tomahawk cruise missiles and 20 new Patriot missiles each month. Deliveries of the THAAD missile system are not expected this year. The Center for Strategic and International Studies estimates that it will take three years or more to restore these ammunition stocks to pre-conflict levels. Elaine McCusker, a senior researcher at the American Enterprise Institute, a think tank, also revealed that the replenishment schedule for most ammunition is in years, usually two to five years. More importantly, in recent weeks, the White House has formally submitted a request to the U.S. Congress for additional funding for the Department of Defense, but has been blocked. In addition, Cancian believes that the White House's efforts to expand the defense industrial base and simplify regulations to speed up production may also have limited impact because increasing production most requires time. A June report by the American Enterprise Institute estimated the cost of Operation Epic Fury at $38.6 billion. The Center for Strategic and International Studies estimated the cost at around $40 billion in its late June report. However, Kent Smetters, Beutner Chair Professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, believes that the actual cost may be as high as $45 billion, because additional expenses need to be included. For example, the cost of replenishing ammunition cannot be calculated based on the purchase price, but should be calculated based on the replacement price that includes the cost of rapid replacement. These figures are significantly higher than the $29 billion cost revealed by Pentagon Acting Chief Financial Officer Jules Hurst III in testimony before Congress in May. Smetters also estimated that the total daily cost of the U.S. military's current low-frequency war with Iran is about $300 million, but this figure gradually accumulates and may fluctuate significantly, depending on how many missions the U.S. military carries out that day, how many aircraft it takes, and everything else. But no matter what, the U.S. actions in Iran are accumulating a huge bill, which will also include repairs of U.S. military facilities in the Middle East, maintenance costs for U.S. Navy ships, and welfare expenditures for soldiers participating in the operation. These expenditures could amount to hundreds of billions of dollars. (