US strikes Qeshm and widens Iran blockade as Qatar mediatesGunman kills six in Krakow market square shootingRussia strikes Kyiv bridge and power grid ahead of Abu Dhabi talksDozens killed in Yemen after Houthis blame Saudi strikes near SanaaHerzog picks Eisenkot to form Israeli government after inconclusive electionRussia upgrades Abu Dhabi delegation as Zelensky warns of 'second Yalta'Storm floods 70,000 tents of displaced people in GazaParaguay's ousted president Peña charged over Ueno bank collapse, detention reportedParis opens inquiry into foreign links to bomb hoaxes as Italian minister reports pro-Russian hackChip stocks rebound after Nasdaq's AI-driven routDeath toll rises after militant attack near Ebola clinic in CongoGuatemalan lawmaker and three police officers killed in Zacapa attackFewer protesters on fourth Saturday of French cost-of-living protestsUS and China trade chiefs voice concerns in video call before Trump-Xi summitStephen Miller named Trump's chief of staff as criticism growsTrump orders Justice Department probe of Democrats as they prepare investigationsData centre backlash spreads from US ballots to European protestsBinance CFO steps down as reports detail North Korean laundering of $6.3bn hackNew Zealand election too close to call as National and Labour draw levelCommerce cleared Nvidia H200 handlers with sanction ties, NYT findsBangladesh garment workers halt production, demanding wages more than doubleRussia places more Japan Tobacco assets under temporary administrationLagarde sees inflation staying high, leaves December rate rise openPope Leo holds first South American Mass in UruguayCOP31 set to open in Antalya as Paris temperature goal is missedPolice use water cannon on masked protesters in TiranaMalaysia's king warns against challenging Najib house arrest orderUS sanctions Canadian firms over Iran tiesUS strikes Qeshm and widens Iran blockade as Qatar mediatesGunman kills six in Krakow market square shootingRussia strikes Kyiv bridge and power grid ahead of Abu Dhabi talksDozens killed in Yemen after Houthis blame Saudi strikes near SanaaHerzog picks Eisenkot to form Israeli government after inconclusive electionRussia upgrades Abu Dhabi delegation as Zelensky warns of 'second Yalta'Storm floods 70,000 tents of displaced people in GazaParaguay's ousted president Peña charged over Ueno bank collapse, detention reportedParis opens inquiry into foreign links to bomb hoaxes as Italian minister reports pro-Russian hackChip stocks rebound after Nasdaq's AI-driven routDeath toll rises after militant attack near Ebola clinic in CongoGuatemalan lawmaker and three police officers killed in Zacapa attackFewer protesters on fourth Saturday of French cost-of-living protestsUS and China trade chiefs voice concerns in video call before Trump-Xi summitStephen Miller named Trump's chief of staff as criticism growsTrump orders Justice Department probe of Democrats as they prepare investigationsData centre backlash spreads from US ballots to European protestsBinance CFO steps down as reports detail North Korean laundering of $6.3bn hackNew Zealand election too close to call as National and Labour draw levelCommerce cleared Nvidia H200 handlers with sanction ties, NYT findsBangladesh garment workers halt production, demanding wages more than doubleRussia places more Japan Tobacco assets under temporary administrationLagarde sees inflation staying high, leaves December rate rise openPope Leo holds first South American Mass in UruguayCOP31 set to open in Antalya as Paris temperature goal is missedPolice use water cannon on masked protesters in TiranaMalaysia's king warns against challenging Najib house arrest orderUS sanctions Canadian firms over Iran ties
Bota
Symbolic image: Pentagon presses arms makers for faster deliveries as interceptor stocks thinSymbolic image

Pentagon presses arms makers for faster deliveries as interceptor stocks thin

5 sources

The Pentagon has given US arms makers 21 days to submit plans for faster weapons deliveries. The push follows stockpile depletion in five months of war with Iran.

Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg wrote to industry leaders on Wednesday, 5 August, demanding "significantly faster, more aggressive delivery schedules" and warning that "years-long development cycles are not acceptable", according to a memo obtained by the Washington Post. He asked contractors to propose capital investments and plant expansions, and named the Next Generation Interceptor and the NASAMS air-defence system among programmes under review for acceleration. Spokesperson Sean Parnell said on Saturday the push will inform the fiscal 2028 budget request.

Patriot at the centre of the shortage

Reuters reports demand for Patriot interceptors has risen sharply, with supplies drained by the Russia-Ukraine war and the Middle East conflict while Ukraine urgently seeks more. The CSIS think tank warns thinner Patriot and THAAD stocks may lead US forces to fire fewer interceptors at incoming Iranian drones and missiles.

Trump plays down the shortage

Trump posted on Truth Social on Thursday that the US holds "massive amounts" of munitions, though he has acknowledged shortages of some weaponry. A defence spending bill remains stalled in Congress.

Other opinions

Telesur ties the memo to a reported rift between Trump and War Secretary Pete Hegseth; Bloomberg and a Wall Street Journal opinion piece frame the crunch as a risk beyond Iran and a case for arming Ukraine.

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