Donald Trump has already burned through more than a staggering $25 billion to fund the war in Iran, a new report found. The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) found that the conflict, which is about to hit the two-month mark, has cost the US between $25 billion and $35 billion.
A congressional source told The Hill that, in the first two days of the war alone, $5.6 billion worth of munitions were used. Since the conflict broke out on February 28, the Pentagon has used in excess of 1,200 Patriot interceptor missiles, which come with a hefty price tag of more than $4 million each.
A single Tomahawk cruise missile costs approximately $2.2 million to $3.6 million per unit, depending on the version, production block, and purchasing agreement.
Newer, more advanced variants, such as the maritime strike model, can cost over $4 million, while ground-based launchers can cost more than $6 million.
The Pentagon also estimates that around 1,100 JASSM-ER missiles have been used, leaving just 1,500 of them in the military’s inventory. These low-observable, long-range cruise missiles cost around $1.1 million each
This staggering level of spending has drained supplies, with Senator Jack Reed on the Armed Services Committee warning that “reconstituting what we have expended could take years”.
Congress is also yet to approve additional funding for the Defence Department, meaning it currently cannot pay manufacturers to replenish supplies, officials told the New York Times.
Despite warnings from experts that production is not expanding fast enough due to a lack of funds, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt maintained that the US has “more than enough” weapons to “achieve any military operation”.
She said: “The United States of America has the most powerful military in the world, fully loaded with more than enough weapons and munitions, in stockpiles here at home and all around the globe, to effectively defend the homeland and achieve any military operation directed by the commander in chief.”
