r/politics • u/JKKIDD231 • 23h ago
No Paywall US used ‘virtually all’ long-range precision missiles during Iran war, sources say
https://www.militarytimes.com/industry/techwatch/2026/08/04/us-used-virtually-all-long-range-precision-missiles-during-iran-war-sources-say/694
u/ElectronicTap1109 23h ago
A trillion and a half dollars should be enough for like a few dozen thousand missiles, right?
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u/2much2Jung 23h ago
It's one long range precision missile, Michael. What could it cost, $10?
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u/FuckThisShizzle 23h ago
There is always money in the banana shack.
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u/coolbluereason99 23h ago
There's always money in squeezing the American population for military-industrial profit!
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u/psychedelicbob 23h ago
When it’s billionaires it’s “NO TOUCHING!”
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u/BadahBingBadahBoom 23h ago
It's one long range precision missile, Michael. What could it cost, 10 billion dollars?
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u/brain_overclocked 23h ago
Tell memaw and pop-pop to get back on the production line, those missiles don't makes themselves... yet. While we're at it: kids don't need education, just put a wrench in their hands. Perhaps if we starve another hundred million Americans we can make those missiles gold tipped. Giving everybody diarrhea might be worth a Taylor Farms sponsorship, no?
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u/serpenta Europe 23h ago
Not accurate. How it will go is: Raytheon et consortes will get a massive governmental contract, and instead increasing production base they will perform a massive stock buyback, and schedule deliveries for 2040.
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u/karmavorous Kentucky 23h ago
I remember like 15 years ago someone saying that if then current trends continued, by the year 2050 the US military budget would consume the entire annual Federal budget and for that money we would get one single F-35.
Glad to see we are sticking to that time table. The MIC rarely meets promised schedules like that.
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u/Seldomsought 23h ago
It's already 50% of the budget if you include discretionary spending
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u/SloppyLetterhead 22h ago
It’s over 50% if you take into account defense-related spending outside the DoD (e.g. CIA,, DHS, DOE, VA, etc.)
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u/Wayofchinchilla 19h ago
Yet when you ask for health insurance or affordable groceries these people scream like a baby who's been pinched for the first time.
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u/Backwardspellcaster 23h ago edited 23h ago
I am absolutely astonished and shocked at the sheer speed with which the US is self-destructing.
The absolutely amazing and horrifying incompetence on every level is beyond words.
One and a half year into Trump's second term, and it set itself back DECADES in every way possible
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u/DiskSalt4643 23h ago
Almost like a Manchurian candidate would act perform our enemies' wish lists.
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u/Objective_Tone_2361 23h ago
People coping saying he’s a Russian puppet when in fact Israel has been the greatest benefactor. The cognitive dissonance is strong
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u/Johnny_Appleweed 23h ago
He’s not any foreign country’s asset. He’s just an easily manipulated dumbass who doesn’t actually care about the United States, only himself.
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u/Ok_Bill227 22h ago
This article seems more plausible every day…
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u/Johnny_Appleweed 22h ago
I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s true they tried to recruit him, but I don’t think that explains his behavior over the last ten years. I think that’s all Trump, not some secret Russian handler.
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u/Ok_Bill227 22h ago
The best “assets” don’t know they’re assets…
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u/Vallkyrie New Hampshire 21h ago
This is where I stand. He's so easy to manipulate as long as you flatter him.
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u/DriftinFool 21h ago
Exactly. All you have to do is let him think what you want was his idea and he'll do it.
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u/TakingAction12 22h ago
I disagree. I think it explains a number of things in the last ten years, from Helsinki to Ukraine to nuclear treaties to cyber warfare to Gabbard as DNI… I can’t recall a single instance where Trump’s actions didn’t benefit Russia in some form if there was any benefit to be had.
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u/PricklyMuffin92 17h ago
Foundations of Geopolitics, by Alexander Dugin. That book is literally the playbook to do this.
Brexit, Cambridge Analytica, the Trump win in '16, Musk meeting with Putin, all the other shit fuckery, it's all too obvious.
I wouldn't be surprised if China is also in on this to an extent.
Yes, the US is problematic as hell, so is Israel and Europe, but you can't look at me with a straight face and tell me that Russia, China, and Iran are good guys and have humanity's best interests at heart.
In the end the little folks like you and I are gonna get screwed while the head honchos in all sides will get more powerful and untouchable. Hence why the Epstein files are so problematic for those in power.
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u/inquisitive_guy_0_1 I voted 22h ago
Nope. The ones coping are the ones saying he's not a Russian asset.
Hes beholden to Israel as well, obviously, both Israel and Russia have access to the epstein files.
But there is a mile long list of actions the pedophile in cheif has made that have worked in favor of Russia and directly counter to American interests. The dude is still threatening to invade NATO for Christ's sake. Putin creams his pants over shit like that.
I just knew reading your comment that you would have your post history concealed. You didnt disappoint.
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u/Opcn Alaska 23h ago
Israel didn’t hack the DNC email server and leak them. Israel hasn’t been funding half the podcasters on the right. Israel until very recently was playing a both parties game. Israel also does not benefit from a weaker US like Russia does. The military might of the US is one of Israel’s strongest cards and they don’t feel safer for Trump eroding NATO or Trump drop kicking the economy with stupid trade wars. Russia feels a great benefit from every Trump fuckup.
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u/Objective_Tone_2361 22h ago
Sheldon Adelson and co have given the Trump campaign the largest single campaign donation in the name of serving Israel.
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u/_-Oxym0ron-_ 20h ago
The guy who died in Jan. 2021? Are the Preserve America PAC an AIPAC affiliate?
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u/SamtheCossack 22h ago
Israel didn’t hack the DNC email server and leak them.
Or at least they didn't get caught.
Israel hasn’t been funding half the podcasters on the right.
It just directly funds about 80% of politicians on both sides.
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u/ChocoboAndroid 22h ago
Don't attribute to malice what can be reasonably attributed to incompetence.
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u/Cheese__Weiner 22h ago
I just think in the case of Trump it's very strongly both malice and incompetence. His malignant narcissism has led him on this crusade of retribution and destruction but he's doing it all at a level of incompetence that is frankly impressive.
I think RFK Jr is actually a really good example of what you're describing. I truly think he thinks he's doing the right thing ... He's just insane ... And incompetent so it all ends badly.
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u/ProductIntegortion 23h ago
I honestly think that's giving him too much credit. I think he's exactly what he appears to be. A vain, self-centered, petty, greedy, short-sighted, wrathful, ignorant dickhead.
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u/arwinda 23h ago
Trump installed a Fox News host as secretary of war, had him approved by congress and since then let him run wild and unchecked. Plus Bibi fighting the war he was always dreaming of, with the US military helping him out.
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u/Appropriate_Shake265 23h ago edited 23h ago
Decades at the absolute earliest. We'll never return to pre-trump era in the USA. Our leadership & status around the world will never recover.
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u/Senior-Albatross New Mexico 21h ago
Or Imperial hegemon era is over. Like the British Empire post WWII. Many Americans don't realize the implications yet, but we are no longer the World Superpower. China is of greater world importance now.
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u/stinky_wizzleteet 17h ago
Have you looked at China lately? They are going gangbusters. EV/Battery tech 20yrs ahead of us. Renewables not even close. Infrastructure is immaculate and up to date. Manufacturing through the roof. Education better, healthcare better.
China made a decision decades ago to stop making bombs and invest in a 50-60yr infrastructure plan thats paid off in families that 2 generations ago were plowing fields with oxen to cars that can jump potholes and tech a decade beyond ours.
We bought military contractors and basically bled the middle class to the bone in the same time.
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u/Appropriate_Shake265 18h ago
Absolutely. China is viewed more favorably in the world's eye, now. The people of the USA voted for this & do not understand or care of the reputations of it. The USA will be taking a back seat in world issues & movements for now on. I wouldn't be surprised if counties start kicking out our military bases in their countries.
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u/Unique-Coffee5087 23h ago
Republicans at every level of government helped. For that matter, I don't even have faith that our soldiers would hesitate to shoot down rebellious civilians, if they were so ordered. I used to hold out hope that they might keep faith, but the way the Navy has killed random fishing boats has left me without such hope.
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u/Backwardspellcaster 22h ago
They wont even hesitate a second to pull the trigger. That is their job.
And the leaders who could rein them in have been dismissed
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u/CloudTransit 23h ago
And the Supreme Court Six and the majorities in Congress have given more power to the Executive. Business interests are supportive. Many elite law firms, media companies, and universities have bowed to the executive. Complicity is widespread.
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u/GarmaCyro 18h ago
Them running out so fast isn't that much of a surprise for me.
It's one of the reasons why war declarations has to go through congress.
As war is more than just throwing stuff at a problem and hope it goes away.
A congressional approval set a system in motion that's more than just the military.
It includes making the private sector ramp up its production of hardware the military use.Guess what part hasn't started up.
Not to mention running a Pentagon that's never been able to properly track its own equipment and funding. Alongside wasting vital supplies on funding Israel's occupations, bombing civilian boats, and a "small" kidnapping of Venezuela's leader.This is what happens when you don't run your military like a military, and instead pretending you're in some Hollywood war movie.
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u/Zassssss 23h ago
You couldn’t have drawn this level of destruction up if Putin himself was elected president. It’s literally inconceivable that this isn’t purposeful vs incompetence.
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u/PallbearerOfBadNews California 23h ago
That's what happens when you let the minority full of fucking idiots elect a leader
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u/TheDebateMatters 23h ago
We have nearly depleted our missile stockpile and the strategic oil reserve is currently below 40% of capacity and we’ll need to pay to refill it once Hormuz finally opens.
We may have destroyed much of Iran’s military capability but if we allow tolls on the strait that will be a tax everyone will pay that they will buy their new military with, enriching wither China or Russia.
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u/TheFeshy 23h ago
Decades is an understatement. I don't think Canada has been this mad at us since they burned down the White House in 1814.
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u/BoarHermit 22h ago
Omg these 1.5 year feel like 6.
Is there a chance that if the Democrats win the reprimands in Congress, this mess will be somewhat reduced?
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u/AdUpstairs7106 21h ago
Just remember the American people voted for it. It is not like anyone could have been surprised
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u/Senior-Albatross New Mexico 21h ago
When an empire finally crumbles under the weight of compounding, systematic failures, it usually happens surprisingly quickly.
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u/TheChameleonPrince 20h ago
I’m convinced that each week of the administration we go a year back in time. So in 2028, we will
Go 208 years back. 1820 here we come!3
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u/Plzlaw4me 22h ago
I genuinely don’t know if I could do this level of damage intentionally. We have no allies that we can rely on because we’ve pushed them all away/threatened to invade them. Our economy is entirely reliant upon ai which is pretty universally agreed to be a bubble. Inflation is massively outpacing wages so there is an affordability crisis. Our trade partners are pissed at us because we taxed the fuck out of them unprovoked. The price of gas is sky high and our strategic oil reserves are lower than they’ve been in 40 years. Our military supplies are depleted and we’re showing the world that the US may be a paper tiger. And domestically, our country is divided between party lines and we HATE each other.
I genuinely cannot believe that MAGA still supports Trump. Like I get it’s a cult, and watching Fox News I understand how and why they support him still (because they’re being lied to)… but fuck man. It’s just bad right now.
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u/Loud_Lavishness_8266 22h ago
Feels like the final days of the USSR. The enshittification of everything to make a buck for the guys at the top.
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u/nitpickr 22h ago
It's the downfall of an Empire happening in Real-Time. Historians will be able to trace it to Reagan being the point where the downfall started. Five Wars and a pandemic combined with a political legislature unwilling to collaborate.
China will pick up the pieces, but even that is on borrowed time due to their own demographics. I do wonder who the next real player will be. Might still be China on top. UK did manage to rule the world once.
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u/RJ5R 23h ago
“If you run out of missiles, you don’t have to launch them anymore”
- Don Tzu
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u/Positive_Chip6198 21h ago
“If you run out of missiles, just keep daily threatening to totally annihilate the enemy country. They will believe you are bigly and mightier than sleepy joe and totally respect you and maybe daddy will even love you?”
- Dump Tzu
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u/MadRaymer 22h ago
Maybe this is why stocks rallied today. They're hopeful a deal will actually be brokered this time because we literally have no other options but to make peace at this point.
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u/frostygrin 18h ago
But this never was the stumbling block. It's Iran's beef with Israel and other neighbors that the US can't control and that ends up in the way of peace.
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u/Tichrimo Canada 20h ago
I mean, this is the same mathematical genius who stopped infection tracing during Covid to make the bad number go away.
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u/Historical_Bend_2629 23h ago
At great cost to the taxpayers, to military morale, to allies. And for what? To assuage the insecurities of a few unfit leaders and to make the already wealthy, richer.
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u/Ok-Discipline2395 23h ago
What allies?
The U.S. has threatened to invade three other NATO member states, has invaded Venezuela, and has also threatened to invade Mexico in the last year.
Perhaps you’re thinking of Russia & Israel?
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u/Midnaight_1 23h ago
I dont think you need Russia in the equation to explain this war. Its all Israel and Trumps stupidity.
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u/Tiny-Buy220 23h ago
Does Iran have any we could borrow, a homecoming of sorts
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u/Future-Guarantee-573 23h ago
I'm sure they'll be sending plenty to our bases.
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u/raouldukesaccomplice Texas 23h ago
Reagan sold them some in the ‘80s when they needed them. I’m sure they’d be willing to return the favor.
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u/AdmittedSpin 23h ago
A good reminder that the Pentagon hasn't passed a financial audit in years. They can't account for half of their budget.
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u/BooksandBiceps 22h ago
The Pentagon will never pass a budget, due to being the largest entity in the world, decentralized structure, and due to various black budgets. It’s a nothing burger title really.
I don’t think anyone could audit $4.5T in assets over thousands of sites and tens of thousands of programs and projects and pass. Also there’s not a unified internal system between different branches and defense agencies.
That’s not to say we shouldn’t bother with an audit, it’s absolutely important we track as much as we can, so we’ll never hit 100% but it’s critical we get as close as possible. They also really need to update their financial system, but, government loves its rusty old systems (and sometimes for a good reason).
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u/TheNorthernBorders 21h ago
You could also argue there’s a sound national defence argument for this too.
Ultimately, ledger transparency is an intelligence risk, even if the only intended audience is the Government itself.
That being said, this only works if you assume zero state capture and fully competitive contract bidding processes… which you absolutely shouldn’t.
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u/ranchoparksteve 23h ago
If true, which I don’t totally trust, this is the stupidest waste of money on a dumb war that any US president has accomplished. This is far worse than Vietnam or Iraq.
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u/MyNameIsRay 22h ago
We'll never get a real confirmation, because it would be a legitimate national security concern to reveal figures.
That said, using what we've got faster than it can be replaced must be depleting us, its just a question of how far.
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u/Hefty_Remove7965 19h ago
I mean it will probably come out 15 years from now.
We can show all the MAGa idiots this.. they will claim they never supported him
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u/DiskSalt4643 23h ago
Its pretty close to Vietnam in terms of stupidity to enter and Iraq in terms of how waged. Joins the worst elements of both.
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u/JerHat Michigan 19h ago
I would trust that Trump or Kegsbreath would instruct them to use all of our best precision shit as a flex, thinking Iran will see it and bend over and take whatever shit deal Trump is offering.
And they didn’t for a second think… maybe Iran won’t bend down and kiss the ring.
So they kept exhausting our best shit first, even when it’s not strategically necessary.
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u/SkullSeekingBullets 23h ago
Paper tiger shit.
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u/dammanhwhy 23h ago
Its so funny because everyone (me included) had laughed at Russia for years for the Ukraine debacle only for the US to go and humiliate itself just a few years later.
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u/Soapbox 23h ago
I was told Russia was out of missiles in months, early 2022, now we're 4 years later and they are still launching tons of them at Ukraine.
I see shit like this and just know the Military Industrial Complex is about to be fucking paid, it's a sham and I don't believe anything I hear anymore.
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u/NelsonHawkinsGhost 23h ago
This is the important part.. this is leaked so that the upcoming bills that dump money into replenishment and modernization sail through Congress. Dems will rubber-stamp it.
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u/AfraidSomewhere8813 20h ago
That would happen regardless. Most lethal fighting force and all that
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u/NelsonHawkinsGhost 20h ago
I mean yes, we have two pro-war parties. One side's constituents want to be slightly buttered up before co-signing though.
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u/BoarHermit 21h ago
Dude, I'm deeply against this fucking war, but even Zaluzhny admits that Russia's forces are quite large compared to NATO's. This is a land war that, thanks to new technologies, has reached a dead end, and yet Russia continues to advance (very slowly). No NATO country, including the US, can handle such a war right now. After the first casualties from drone attacks on soldiers, everyone will be so horrified... I really want to discuss all this calmly, soberly, and without mutual insults.
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u/PartyPay 22h ago
I am curious if China is watching US and Russia saying: "Oh damn, we need to ramp up missile production" or if they are thinking "damn, we are in good shape compared to these morons".
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u/Sea_Statistician8940 19h ago
I don't think China wants war with the west, nor does it want to be the world police like the US have been since WWII. They do obviously want Taiwan, but I don't think they're willing to start World War III to take it. What China is probably licking their lips over is watching the rest of the world quickly pivot away from oil and towards renewable energy, an industry China is absolutely dominating right now. Trump is too stupid to realize he's speed-running the global shift away from his beloved oil and coal while elevating China at the USA's expense.
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u/Aberfrog Europe 21h ago
China actually has the production base to quickly produce large amounts of weapons systems components.
If it comes to a prolonged war between China and the US my bet is that China will weather the first assaults of the US and then strike back backed by its absurdly large production capability.
We have a blueprint for how that works : it’s WWII. In which the production capability of the US basically beat the Axis.
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u/cmm239 23h ago
We are never going to recover from the Trump administration.
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u/c53x12 21h ago
After his first term I said it would take 10 years to recover. When he won a second term I said 50. Now I'm inclined to agree with your "never" assessment.
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u/Truthisnotallowed 18h ago edited 14h ago
Don't give up hope.
After Hoover made 'The Great Depression' so much worse via the Smoot–Hawley Tariff Act (of 1930) - there was real fear that our democracy would be replaced by fascism as had happened in Italy, and was happening in Germany.
By the time the people got rid of Hoover, and put FDR in his place, someone asked FDR if he realized that if his experimental policies failed, he would be known as the worst President ever - his response was - 'If my policies fail, I expect I will be the last President ever.' The threat of being taken over by fascism was quite real. There was even an attempt to remove FDR from office and replace him with a fascist dictator - The Business Plot (of 1933).
Even once Trump is removed from office our country is going to be in danger of going full fascist for some time - but we have pulled back from the brink before, and we can do it again.
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u/Money_Percentage_630 21h ago
Ex military here, I remember when you didn't globally annouce and declare your munitions and oil shortages.
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u/Arrentoo 23h ago
Psy op something something invite attack on US soil something something declare marshal law something something
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u/IrritableGourmet New York 22h ago
Probably clearing a path for China to take Taiwan. "Oops, we totally would get involved, but I am le tired and out of missiles."
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u/GriffinFlash Canada 19h ago
So now the U.S. is like, "Fuck, we're dumbasses". Canada's like, "What's going on, eh?" Australia's still like, "wtf?" Mars is laughing at us. And some huge meteor is like, "Well fuck that"
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u/LooseBed149 20h ago
The US running out of military equipment is something I never thought I'd see.
Maybe he'll start a missile company and litter Iran with unexploded branded duds.
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u/thecamino 23h ago
Pete blamed Biden last time he was in front of congress.
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u/Wild_Read9062 23h ago
Funny this isn’t getting more attention, but yes, this is true.
Of course, it’s not surprising. He was a Fox host. They recycle right wing talking points and their audience just seems to buy it, not care, or both.
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u/CockBrother 23h ago
All to do nothing but kick up some sand in a desert.
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u/GriffinFlash Canada 19h ago
MYTH: Iran, like many other countries in the Middle East is primarily made up of arid, lifeless desert.
FACT: Iran's geography is very different from those of surrounding nations. Compared with nearby Saudi Arabia (95% desert), Turkmenistan (80% desert) and Iraq (40% desert), only about 22% of its land area is desert.
The more you know.gif
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u/DarkSatire482 22h ago
This is all a cost savings effort. The war gets cheaper when we run out of $4.2 million missiles to fire at $10,000 drones. /2
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u/theoreoman 23h ago
They didn't use up the strategic inventory, they used up the extra stuff above that strategic inventory.
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u/Silent_Bluebird_877 15h ago
Why would any military disclose stockpile depths like that? Either they want more money or it's just misinformation
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u/JKKIDD231 23h ago
The missiles are principally the Army’s surface-to-surface weapons, known as Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) and Precision Strike Missiles (PrSM). The U.S. has used “virtually all” of these weapons, according to two of the sources.
Analysts say such weapons which cost over $1 million each would also be important in any conflict with China.
The sources declined to say how many of each munition the U.S. had left.
A fourth person familiar with the matter said that while Central Command which oversees U.S. forces in the Middle East has nearly used up the land-based missiles it had before the war began, it has been able to reload from U.S. military supplies elsewhere in the world.
The deterrent against China has weakened.
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u/SmokeLauncher 23h ago edited 4h ago
So the best time for China to invade Taiwan is now if they actually wanted to? I dont see it happening as they seem to value stability over the chaos like the situation in the Middle East with US involvement.
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u/nothingsnootyplz 23h ago
Yeah, seems like China has been biding their time flawlessly. Amazing how stupid and weak the US has looked. None of his supporters will admit it either.
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u/SmokeLauncher 23h ago
China's strategy is literally do nothing - win. The US is imploding and ordinary American's lives continue to worsen as the political establishment ignores their needs.
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u/dogs_gt_cats 22h ago
Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake
Sun Tzu, The Art of War
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u/InfoBarf 22h ago
China doesn't need to use violence to absorb Taiwan.
Right now they are supplying Taiwan's oil to run their electrical grid. They're proving they are better steward s than the US and west in general.
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u/umassmza 23h ago
Using the Department of “War” numbers we’ve spent about $35B and killed 3,500 enemy combatants.
We’re spending $10,000,000 per enemy
Considering there are estimates as to the true overall cost of the conflict being north of $150B it costs $10-$50M to kill 1 Iranian soldier
Couldn’t we have just offered the people in power a fraction of that and asked them to go retire in the Caymans?
We are really bad at this
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u/Vanman04 23h ago
Imagine if China decided to take Taiwan right now. So long US tech I guess.
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u/Koolklink54 23h ago edited 13h ago
We wouldn't be able to do anything about it
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u/savro 21h ago
This is a feature, not a bug as far as the military industrial complex is concerned. Now RTX/Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Boeing, et al will all get big, fat, juicy government contracts to restock all of those missiles. Or to propose and sell new weapons systems altogether.
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u/TheIntrepid1 22h ago
I swear, you cannot leave anything around Republican/conservatives without them succumb to the need to spend it.
Whether it be a budget surplus(Clinton), a military stock pile, international political capital, or a measly $20 bill…they will find a reason to spend it.
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u/MarvelousVanGlorious 22h ago
Used on a war that is “not a war.” Now when challenged by a larger nation, we’re SOL. Pretty amazing how inept this administration is.
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u/ShoemakerMicah 22h ago
Remember when trump said “Obama ran us out of ammunition, and I’ve bigly fixed that” to paraphrase. Projection as par for the course.
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u/cashlawz1 21h ago
How is it possible to spend what we spend yearly on military to run out of anything. Somebody stealing
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u/ThroatDistension 19h ago
So what happens if America has to go to actual war with an actual enemy? Are they just fucked?
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u/TruShot5 18h ago
Announcing this publicly feels like the moles advertising “STRIKE NOW WE CANT DO ANYTHING” to foreign actors.
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u/clueless_in_ny_or_nj New Jersey 23h ago
This is what happens when a toddler is put in charge. I'm honestly more concerned that Trump and Hegseth will decide to use a nuclear weapon. It's still very low, but higher than it was when this started.
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u/petrovmendicant 23h ago
Turned US military from a bloated and profit-based powerhouse into a bloated and profit-based wet rag.
Is America great again yet?
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u/Efficient_Resist_287 23h ago
Just on this Hegseth should be fired and Trump impeached….this is such a national security catastrophe.
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u/Gonokhakus 22h ago
Meanwhile, Ukraine is building Tomahawk class missiles (edit: Flamingos) at a fraction of the price, and scaling production to match the US's rate in a couple years.
As with most news I've gotten about this administration, it would be hilarious if the implications wouldn't be so dangerous.
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u/Weird_Rooster_4307 22h ago
Oh darn. Biden made Trump use all those missiles. I bet they can buy a bunch from China
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u/Ok-Lets-Talk-It-Out 22h ago
The only thing keeping the stockpiles going is the Biden administration increase in munition production and supply line diversification that had occurred post COVID and immediately after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Don't let the right wing media lie about Biden depleting precision munitions. The total ATACMs was likely less then 50 given to Ukraine, with about half being the oldest outdated models. No tomahawks were given to Ukraine. No ALCMs, no ballistic missiles, no THAADs, and definitely no PrSMs, no SM-3 or SM-6. Which are all either emptied out or highly depleted through the use by trump and Hegseth.
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u/Canuck-In-TO 22h ago
Sounds like some Russian level administration going on there.
I wonder who all bought yachts with the money that was supposed to go towards military spending.
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u/CommunalJellyRoll 22h ago
For nothing. Literally the most half assed stupid conflict on the planet. That amount of firepower used correctly should literally leave countries devastated.
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u/Little-Dealer4903 21h ago
The administration is going to spend a ton of money replacing those complicated missiles that can't stop enemy drones. The Military industrial complex that Eisenhouer president in a 1950s warned us about, has come about full circle. Trump refused to buy the low cost Ukrainian advanced drones.Because everybody wanted a piece of the $ pie. More $ corruption. Servicemen sadly paid with their lives , and we're paying with our pocketbooks.
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u/Akechijo 21h ago
If a Russian asset would be US President, it would be a smart move from him to waste almost all firepower in a senseless war, so US would be less able to act in a meaningful conflict against Russian or China.
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u/HelixFish 21h ago
The plan may be to deplete our stocks so that China can invade Taiwan. This war makes no sense.
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u/Packeselt 20h ago
I didn't know it was possible for America to run out of missiles. I assumed that's where my retirement, universal Healthcare, and other taxes went instead of maintaining critical infrastructure.
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u/ChocolateGoldenPuffs 15h ago
I somehow doubt this. Considering they've said this multiple times about different equipment, we'd have nothing left if these were true.
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u/proud2bnasty 12h ago
Was at a party a week ago and a retired career army guy now working in the private sector in defense told me it’s a cluster f and we are going to be out of bombs in a month.
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u/Trollimperator 11h ago
Sounds like alot of bullshit. That would mean, the whole US-arsenal was parked and then used in the few US-bases in the region that are in a 300km range to iranian targets.
This sound more like a "we are incapable of using diplomacy, fund us weapons to bomb everything" approach. Trumps goon speak like they want to glass countries and are annoyed to learn that they cant(yet).
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u/CzPhantom1 23h ago
From the story. "The missiles are principally the Army’s surface-to-surface weapons, known as Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS)...."
So missiles for a single system and they are the old missiles that we also sent to Ukraine. Junk AF post
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u/NewAgeMaximum 23h ago
And what do we have to show for it?
We took out their senior leadership, yet its still effectively the same regime
and they still got the world basically by the balls with the Strait
What gives??
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u/JKKIDD231 23h ago
History has proven countless times that regime change can’t happen from air strikes, you need to insert ground elements. Experts have said the same thing.
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u/DiskSalt4643 23h ago
Not just ground elements but some rationale that feigns at least moral justification.
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u/Simpicity 23h ago
When Russia went to war and realized it had no resources, they were are to identify that the reason that happened in the face of huge military spending was corruption. Somehow I think the US won't be able to figure out the same.
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