Budget strain cuts military training as renewed Iran fighting threatens to drive defence costs even higher
The Pentagon is confronting an urgent funding shortfall driven largely by the war in Iran, with key military accounts expected to run dry within weeks as US President Donald Trump expands the conflict, The Washington Post reported on Tuesday, citing US officials.
The budget strain has already forced the military to scale back training and maintenance that support readiness, the report said. The collapse of the ceasefire with Iran is expected to increase costs further after four US service members were killed during renewed fighting, raising expectations of a broader conflict.
The White House has requested $67 billion in emergency funding, but Congress remains deadlocked. With the House set to begin a month-long recess, additional military funding is unlikely in the near term.
“Everybody needs to look at this situation and get rid of the complacency that they have,” Rep. Pat Harrigan, a Republican member of the House Armed Services Committee, said in an interview.
After publication of the original report, Pentagon press secretary Sean Parnell said Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth would “do whatever is necessary” to maintain military readiness and called defense funding “essential.”
Hegseth and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine are scheduled to press the administration’s funding request before the Senate Appropriations Committee, while White House budget director Russell Vought is expected to brief Republican lawmakers.
Prolonged conflict
Trump launched the air campaign in late February, predicting it would end within weeks, and later suggested numerous times that the war was nearly over or won, but the conflict has stretched on for months. Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz has disrupted global oil and fertilizer trade, adding to economic instability.
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Vought told lawmakers the war had cost about $30 billion so far, though analysts estimate the total is significantly higher because it excludes rebuilding US bases damaged by Iranian attacks.
The prolonged conflict has placed heavy demands on the US Navy and Air Force, with funding for ongoing operations projected to run out by the end of the month.
To keep operating until the new fiscal year begins on Oct. 1, the Pentagon has shifted money from training, maintenance, and weapons procurement, leading to canceled exercises and deferred upkeep.
The Defense Department has also asked Congress to approve the transfer of $4.3 billion from training and weapons programs to higher-priority needs, but lawmakers have yet to act. A Trump administration official said the White House is also considering redirecting additional funds to Pentagon operations, though that would come at the expense of other programs.