The US, Israel, and the Persian Gulf states could exhaust their missile arsenals within days if Iran maintains its current strike rate, Bloomberg reported, citing a source familiar with the situation.
The agency noted that defense against Iranian ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as drones, requires a large number of interceptors. Military doctrine typically calls for launching two to three missiles at each target. As a result, stockpiles are depleted faster than production can replenish them.
Kelly Grieco, a senior fellow at the Stimson Center, told Bloomberg that missile defense systems, particularly antiballistic missiles, are a “significant concern” because “we’re using them faster than we can produce them.”
Experts say that if Iran continues to launch missiles in large numbers, the question will not be the effectiveness of its air defense systems, but whose munitions will be used up first.
The Wall Street Journal also reported that the US military is warning US leaders about the risk of rapidly depleting its stockpile of anti-missile interceptors in the event of a large-scale conflict with Iran.
According to the newspaper, this concerns munitions for air defense systems, including Patriot and THAAD. In the event of intense missile strikes, the stockpile of such missiles could be significantly depleted within a few weeks.