Consider This from NPR - Is the US running out of weapons in the Iran War?

Episode Date: May 14, 2026

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is butting heads with Democratic Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona again — this time, over Kelly’s recent statements that the U.S. is depleting its weapons supply in this war with Iran.Secretary Hegseth says that in discussing information from Pentagon briefings, Senator Kelly violated protocol. But the back-and-forth does raise the question: What's the status of the Pentagon's weapons stockpile amid the war with Iran? Barbara Starr, former CNN Pentagon correspondent and current senior fellow at the The USC Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership & Policy, provides insight.For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at [e-mail]. This episode was produced by Lauren Hodges, with audio engineering by Hannah Gluvna.It was edited by Courtney Dorning and Tinbete Ermyas.Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

It's consider this where every day we go deep on one big news story. And today, the war in Iran and America's military readiness. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Democratic Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona are at it again. This time over Kelly's recent statements on CBS's Face the Nation. I think it's fair to say it's shocking how deep we have gone into these magazines because this president got our country into this. without a strategic goal, without a plan, without a timeline. And because of that, we've expended a lot of munitions. And that means the American people are less safe.

Whether it's a conflict in the Western Pacific with China or somewhere else in the world, the munitions are depleted. Hegg Seth responded with a social media post, accusing the Democratic senator of, quote, blabbing about a classified Pentagon briefing. Earlier this week, Hegseth called for an investigation into Kelly's statements. Lost in this whole back and forth is a real examination of whether the U.S. military has the resources to fight another war. Consider this. Hegset is not disputing Kelly's remarks.

What does this whole tit-for-tap between the two of them tell us about America's ability to fight on other fronts? From NPR, I'm Elsa Chang. It's Consider This, from NPR. And PR. Earlier this month, Pete Hegseth testified before the Senate about U.S. munitions. And Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona was the one asking the questions. How many years to replenish? That's the question. I think that's exactly the right question, too, Senator, because the time frame we were existing under was unacceptable. Okay.

And what this budget does? I mean, months and years. Fast. Years. I mean, we're building new plants in real time. So just to replace what we have expended. I said months. And then you said years. So where are we with our ammunition capabilities in this war with Iran?

And how does that affect our military capabilities in this conflict and in other conflicts, including any in the near future? Here to talk about that is Barbara Starr, former CNN Pentagon correspondent and current senior fellow at the USC Annenberg Center on Communication, Leadership, and Policy. Welcome. Well, thank you for having me. So first off, Barbara, I just want to address what Secretary Hegseth said about Senator Kelly. was this classified information that Kelly disclosed, do you think? I don't think you can make a strong case that it's classified to say we've expended weapons in this war. I mean, this is something every single day as it was going on. The Pentagon was talking about firing weapons against Iranian targets.

What becomes classified is if the senator was to get into extreme detail about how much is left in the stockpile. specific munitions, how much they have of this or that. And I didn't see that he got into that kind of detail. Right. Okay. Well, getting into a little more detail, but not from Senator Kelly. I saw an analysis last month from the Center for Strategic and International Studies that said that the military had used up quite a bit of its stockpile and it listed various categories. I mean, how close are we actually to just running out of weapons at this point after starting this award with Iran? Well, the Pentagon's view is that we're not close, that we have plenty left. But, you know, a reality check here, the U.S. has relied a great deal on using its precision weapons stocks. And as those go lower and lower because of the use of them, there has to be a plan in place, both the money, the funding, and the production capability to replenish those stocks. And right now, I think it's fair to say that the big concern is to make sure they replenish the Patriot missiles, the air defense capability. These are the things that have been used up. These are the things that our allies are using in the Gulf. Everybody needs to get more of this back into the stockpile. Okay. So paint a picture for us. Can you just put in plain terms what kind of potential future conflicts is the U.S. potentially unprepared for, given the supply of the weapons that you have just named? Well, I think that's the key question right now. is if the stockpiles are not topped off, which right now they don't appear to be, can the U.S. simultaneously prosecute wars in Asia, that means China or North Korea, the Gulf against Iran, and in Europe against Russia?

We think that's not very likely, but let's face it, in both Europe, where the U.S. is supporting Ukraine and in the Middle East, they're already using up weapons. It's a key reason the stockpile is diminished. Yeah. Well, are you hearing anything from your Pentagon sources about their concern over the U.S. weapons stockpile? Well, you know, it's interesting. Even Pete Hexef on Capitol Hill in the last few days said, it's got to get replenished and it's going to take months. He claims there's a plan to do it, but they're going to need funding. And already, I think one of the most interesting wrinkles here is we're seeing both the Army and the Navy say, if they don't get more funding to replace what they are spending on this war, they're going to have to cut back training. So this is beginning to ripple through the system. And that means the administration has to send a funding plan to Congress, and Congress has to act on it.

Do you think Hegseth's estimate that this could take months for the stockpile to replenish? Is that a fair estimate? Do you have a sense? Well, I think for some weapons, possibly, but for the so-called smart weapons, the very complex weapons that have precision fabrication, satellite-guided systems that the U.S. relies so much on right now, that's going to take billions of dollars. I don't know that anybody has a solid estimate. and it's going to be months, if not years. And by the time you replenish, the U.S. is going to be on to the next generation of those weapons.

So this is going to be a problem that will ripple through the Pentagon for years to come. Of course. Okay. Well, then in the meantime, in terms of Iran's capabilities, what have we learned about their arsenal or their ability to replenish their stockpile? Well, it's interesting you ask because talk. U.S. officials say that Iran has lost, you know, something like 90% of its naval mines, has lost its missile capability. They talk about how much Iran has lost. But in the meantime,

there's significant reporting out there, especially from the New York Times, that Iran has been able to restore some of its coastal missile sites along the Strait of Hormuz, and that it has retained some of its pre-war stockpile. And we know that Iran still has the capability to fire its weapons. We have seen it in recent days. Is it what it was before the war? No. But can they hold targets at risk? Can they hold U.S. allies at risk? Most certainly. Barbara Starr, former CNN Pentagon correspondent and current senior fellow at the USC Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership and Policy. very much. Thanks for having me.

This episode was produced by Lauren Hodges, with audio engineering by Hannah Glovena. It was edited by Courtney Dorney and Timby-Earmus. Our executive producer is Sammy Enochon. It's Consider This from NPR. I'm Elsa Chang.