Trump denies US munitions shortages amid reports he confronted Pete Hegseth

President’s comment come after report he had demanded answers from Pete Hegseth over alleged shortagesMiddle East crisis live – latest updatesDonald Trump has lashed out at reports that the US is running short of key munitions in its war with Iran, threatening long prison sentences for officials who leak information about the military’s weapons stocks.The US president claimed on Thursday that the US had “massive amounts” of ammunition and said more was being manufactured and shipped to the region, as his frustration over the conflict spilled into a public attack on the media. Continue reading...

President Donald Trump is crashing out about a report that he confronted Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over the U.S. military’s depleted munitions stockpile. Trump took to Truth Social less than an hour into Thursday to hit back at The Washington Post for reporting that tensions between Hegseth and the president had “boiled over” on the sidelines of a Cabinet meeting at Camp David last week. “The U.S. has massive amounts of ‘munitions,’ especially of certain types,” Trump wrote. “Additionally, large amounts are being manufactured and shipped to the U.S. as needed. Defense companies are building the largest number of plants and factories in our country’s history.” “The ‘leakers’ of these treasonous statements are being hunted down. Long term jail sentences will be sought!” Trump wrote. Notably, Trump didn’t deny unloading on Hegseth. This isn’t the first time the Trump administration has challenged reports that the country’s weapons stockpile is low, and still managed to threaten the leakers with jail time. If the story is false, then why would it be treasonous to tell it? The shortages of long-range guided missiles and air-defense interceptors caused Trump to pull back from launching any massive strikes against Iran, one source familiar with discussions told the Post. On Monday, the president claimed he’d changed his mind about launching “the biggest attack since World War II.”Meanwhile, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt insisted that the confrontation “literally never happened,” but didn’t respond to the claims about the U.S. weapons stockpile.“This B.S. story was shopped to many outlets by someone clearly out to disparage the Secretary, for whatever reason. Unfortunately for them, the President loves the Secretary and thinks he’s doing a tremendous job. FAKE NEWS!” she wrote on X.Assistant Secretary of Defense Sean Parnell joined in, writing on X, “We told the Washington Post the same thing. They ran with the fake, anonymously sourced B.S. anyway. Complete & total Fake News.” It’s been more than five months since Trump launched his military onslaught against Iran, and multiple reports have raised concerns that the United States is running out of weapons.

Washington: President Donald Trump said on Thursday the United States has a vast supply of munitions and threatened those who suggested otherwise with jail terms as his frustration with the Iran war boiled over.The Republican leader lashed out on his Truth Social platform at media reports about the dwindling weapons stockpile, saying that the United States has "massive amounts of 'munitions' especially of certain types," without giving further detail."Additionally, large amounts are being manufactured and shipped to the U.S. as needed. Defense companies are building the largest number of plants and factories in our country's history," he said.The Washington Post reported that Trump demanded answers about the munitions shortages from Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth last Friday, when they attended a cabinet meeting at the Camp David presidential retreat.Also read | ‘Don’t want to kill people,' Trump says Iran asked him to halt the ‘biggest attack’ since WWIITrump told Hegseth that he thought the munitions issue "had been fixed," the Post reported, citing two unidentified sources familiar with the exchange.Trump railed against the media reports, threatening on Thursday that "the 'leakers' of these treasonous statements are being hunted down" and "Long term jail sentences will be sought!"CNN also reported that shortages of long-range guided missiles and air-defense interceptors had affected Trump's strategy in the conflict with Iran, with the US military having "nearly exhausted 80%" of its stock of THAAD interceptors.The Post also said that the shortages led Trump to call off fresh strikes against Iran, despite having threatened to hit the Islamic republic "very hard".Also read | Why Russia's ballistic missiles are increasingly getting through Ukrainian defensesWhite House press secretary Karoline Leavitt branded coverage of the exchange with Hegseth "FAKE NEWS!""I was at Camp David with President Trump and Secretary Hegseth. This literally never happened," she wrote on X.Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said the reports about Trump's clash with Hegseth and the weapons shortages were "equally fictional."Iran's foreign ministry has denied there are any negotiations underway with Washington, even as Trump said Tehran was keen for a deal.