Overview
- The Washington Post reported that President Trump pressed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for answers about a shortfall in long‑range missiles and interceptors that reportedly shaped his decision not to order further large strikes on Iran.
- Hegseth is reported to have defended his record and blamed his deputy, Stephen Feinberg, for failures to fully inform the president about stocks.
- The White House and Mr. Trump publicly rejected the Post’s account, with spokespeople and the president calling the story false and saying Trump remains satisfied with Hegseth.
- U.S. officials have announced new production agreements for key munitions, including Patriot interceptors, but government timelines warn that boosting output could take up to two years and will not quickly resolve current shortages.
- Reporting says U.S. forces used large quantities of munitions early in the campaign — including hundreds of Tomahawk cruise missiles, more than 1,000 air‑defense interceptors and over 1,300 tactical ballistic missiles — leaving some stocks such as ATACMS nearly exhausted and creating pressure from allied demands like Ukraine.