Trump defends handling of US munitions amid Iran conflict

President Trump on Thursday said the U.S. has “virtually unlimited” amounts of mid- to high-grade munitions, pushing back on reports of the Pentagon depleting its stockpiles in the Iran war.

In a post on Truth Social , Trump called journalists who report on U.S. munitions shortages “treasonous SCUM,” saying the country has “virtually unlimited amounts of Mid to High Grade Ammunition, far more than we could ever use” for the Iran conflict or “for any other War.”

The president continued, “In addition, we are producing Munitions at levels never seen before. We are stockpiling and preparing for any contingency that could happen,” adding weapons sales to allies will resume “soon again.”

The war with Iran has entered its seventh month, with no sign of a lasting peace between the two sides. The U.S. and Islamic Republic exchanged strikes earlier this week, after the Iranian military sought to further impose its will over navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.

The conflict has put a strain on the Pentagon’s stockpiles of various long-range missiles. As of late July, the U.S. had between 759 and 827 Patriot missile interceptors, down from 2,330 the day before the war, according to an estimate from analysts at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).

The Pentagon’s stockpile of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) interceptors was also down from 452 prewar to between 234 and 278 on July 27, the CSIS noted.

The Defense Department on Monday reached seven-year deals with General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems and Lockheed Martin to speed up the production of THAAD and Patriot Advanced Capability-3 Missile Segment Enhancement PAC-3 MSE components.

The goal of the agreement is to triple the production capacity of PAC-3 MSE interceptors and quadruple the production capacity of THAAD interceptors, the Pentagon noted in a release .

“We are cutting red tape, shortening timelines, and rapidly scaling our domestic manufacturing capacity to deliver the advanced air and missile defense capabilities,” said Michael Duffey, undersecretary of Defense for acquisition and sustainment, in the release.

The Pentagon also reached a deal last month with Northrop Grumman to boost production of the two interceptors.