Published on 07/04/2026 at 22:32, Updated on 07/04/2026 at 22:57
Reading time: 2min – Video: 2min
Almost 40 days after the start of the war, will Americans run out of weapons? They have already fired more than 850 Tomahawk missiles at Iran in 2026, more than during the first two Gulf Wars. Are the American reserves running low? France Télévisions takes a closer look.
Bombings at an unprecedented rate. Already 13,000 American strikes on Iran, a bottomless pit that could run dry. Some Democratic senators are sounding the alarm. “With all the ammunition used for different objectives, in the seven conflicts that the president has dragged America into, our stocks are low and well-known to the public,” Senator Mark Robert Warner warned.
The Americans’ favorite weapon in the Middle East: Tomahawk missiles. Long-range cruise missiles of extreme precision. The United States had about 3,000 of them. More than a third, 850, have already been used against Iran, while production is limited. The Pentagon will receive only an additional 190 this year. Not enough to replenish the stocks or the treasury. With each Tomahawk fired, it costs $3.6 million. They often leave grey trails in the skies of the Middle East.
To defend their bases, defend the Gulf countries, Americans and their allies have used 1,800 Patriot interceptor missiles, while only 700 will be produced in 2026. Donald Trump has asked defense contractors to quadruple their production, but remains confident. “Fortunately, we have plenty. We have endless reserves of medium and long-range weapons. In the end, we have plenty, but we are preserving what we can,” assured the American president to the press.
But according to experts, with this conflict, the United States is mainly limiting its future ability to react: “We may have all the ammunition we need for this war, but what makes military strategists nervous is a potential conflict in the Pacific, in Asia. If something were to happen there, the United States would not have enough. Already, before this war, the stocks of long-range missiles were limited. Now, it’s even worse,” worries Colonel Mark Cancian from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Aware of this issue, Donald Trump aims to increase the defense budget to $1.5 trillion in 2027, an increase of almost 50%, even if it means cutting into other expenses like health or education.
