“It takes money to kill bad guys,” #Hegseth told reporters on March 19, saying the ask of Congress is intended to ensure “we’re properly funded for what’s been done, for what we may have to do in the future [&] ensure that our ammunition is — everything’s refilled & not just refilled, but above & beyond.”

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…the #Pentagon is seeking >$200 billion from #Congress to fund the #war in #Iran, an enormous ask that has already run into resistance from lawmakers opposed to the conflict. #Hegseth, when asked about that reporting, said last week that the final budget request “could move.”

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The admin nonetheless has convened meetings on the issue, inviting executives from numerous #defense contractors, including Raytheon, to the White House. #Trump claimed on social media afterward that the companies had agreed to “quadruple Production of the ‘Exquisite Class’ Weaponry.” A similar meeting is expected again in two months, he wrote.

#Hegseth personally has urged defense firms to speed delivery of key weapons, said one person familiar…

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Mark Cancian, a senior adviser at CSIS, said if the #military has fired >800 #Tomahawks against #Iran, “that would be about a quarter of the total inventory & would leave a large gap for a conflict in the Western Pacific.” His think tank assesses that the Navy may have had as few as 3,100 Tomahawks on hand at the start of the #war a month ago.

“It would take several years to replenish,” Cancian said.

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…MacKenzie Eaglen, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, said that before Operation Epic Fury began late last month, the Navy probably had 4,000–4,500 #Tomahawk missiles on hand. Others naval analysts have said the number could be much lower, perhaps closer to 3,000, following their extensive use in recent operations, including the #Trump admin’s strikes last year in #Iran, #Yemen & #Nigeria.

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…The #US #military also has fired >1,000 air-defense interceptor missiles in response to #Iran counterattacks across the region, including from the #Patriot & Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (#THAAD) systems, which are considered the world’s most advanced, 2 other officials familiar with the issue said. The inventory of those weapons also is limited & not publicly disclosed.

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…The most recent versions of the #Tomahawk missile can cost as much as $3.6 million a piece & require up to 2 years to build, acc/to Navy documents. In recent years, they have been purchased in small batches, with just 57 included in last year’s defense budget.

Many of the 850+ expended Tomahawks were fired in the opening days of Operation Epic Fury, the #Trump admin’s [ridiculous] name for the #war in #Iran, people familiar with the matter said.

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#Tomahawk missiles, which can be launched from Navy surface warships & submarines, have been a staple of #US #military attacks since they were first used in combat in 1991 during the Persian Gulf War. But only a few hundred are manufactured each year, meaning the global supply is limited. The #Pentagon does not publicly disclose how many missiles are in its inventory at any one time.

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