US ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz has said that the US has "everything it needs" to conduct military operations against Iran, denying reports that US arms stockpiles have run out.
This is reported by NBC News.
"I want to be absolutely clear: the US military - and I have verified this in every possible way - has everything it needs to conduct this campaign as effectively as it needs to. And I have to tell you that those who spread this nonsense deserve to be imprisoned," he said.
Waltz was commenting on an NBC News report that two senior US officials said US military commanders were allowing some Iranian attacks to breach US defences as part of efforts to preserve the Pentagon's weapons stockpile. The paper also reported earlier that US weapons stockpiles were dwindling as the war with Iran continued.
Waltz initially claimed that the stockpile had been depleted under the Biden administration. He said that Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth "inherited a depleted situation not just because of Ukraine but also because of the ongoing fight against the Houthis under the Biden administration and a depleted military under the Biden administration".
He said the military under the Trump administration had decided that "first of all, they are moving to new types of munitions, cheaper munitions, new technologies and also, with new defence budgets, rebuilding our large armed forces".
In April, during a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee in April, Hegseth admitted that it could take "months and years" to restore the weapons stockpile.
At the same time, the United States has launched a series of nighttime attacks on Iran, which have been going on for almost two weeks. Trump told reporters that the United States is still "in talks with them," but Iran and its allies continue to strike ships, disrupting global trade routes.
When asked whether Trump has decided to refrain from escalating the conflict amid the pause in the series of strikes, Walz replied that he "would not go that far at all," adding that "the president is keeping all options open."
As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, US President Donald Trump said in the meantime that neither the People's Republic of China nor the russian federation are involved in supplying weapons to the Islamic Republic of Iran. He also assured that the United States does not provide weapons to Ukraine, as it sells them only to NATO allies.
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