The Pentagon’s Inspector General said Operation Epic Fury has resulted in “strategic inventory shortfalls” and industrial base bottlenecks for munitions resupply.
In its mandatory report to Congress, the Defense Department watchdog on Monday estimated the campaign against Iran cost $33.4 billion as of June 29.
Of that amount, $22.3 billion was spent on expended munitions and $3.7 billion on equipment losses.
The White House has repeatedly pushed back on concerns about fast-depleting U.S. ammunition. On Sept. 4, President Trump said on Truth Social that the U.S. has “virtually unlimited amounts of Mid to High Grade Ammunition, far more than we could ever use for this, or any other War.”
Mr. Trump also said the U.S. was producing munitions at “levels never seen before.”
“We are stockpiling and preparing for any contingency that could happen,” he said. “We are taking them for ourselves, the U.S.A., rather than selling them to others, but the sales to allies will soon again begin.”
The inspectors said the volume and financial cost of U.S. used ammo during Epic Fury illustrates the magnitude of the threat posed by Tehran.
“Iran has the largest armed forces in the region and spent decades of intense focus developing and expanding its own domestic defense industry,” the IG report stated. “Iran has also focused heavily on passive defense measures to protect its military capabilities, including extensive underground facilities, dispersal of munitions inventories, concealment and deception to mask equipment, and mobile launch platforms.”
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