SAEDNEWS: A U.S. newspaper has claimed that tensions reached a peak during discussions at Camp David, where President Donald Trump reportedly confronted the Defense Secretary over the decline in America's missile stockpiles.
According to Saednews report by The Washington Post, citing two informed sources, frustration over the depletion of the U.S. weapons stockpile reportedly surfaced during discussions at Camp David. The report claims that U.S. President Donald Trump questioned Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth about why he had not been informed sooner of severe missile shortages that were allegedly limiting potential military operations against Iran.
The newspaper states that the tense exchange occurred on the sidelines of a Cabinet meeting last Friday. According to anonymous sources, Trump expressed strong dissatisfaction, saying he believed the ammunition shortage had already been resolved.
The report further claims that dwindling supplies of long-range precision-guided weapons and air-defense interceptors played a significant role in Trump's decision not to authorize additional large-scale strikes against Iranian targets.
Trump had recently claimed he had prepared what he described as the "largest attack since World War II," but said it had been suspended due to the possibility of diplomatic negotiations concerning the Strait of Hormuz.
According to The Washington Post, although the United States has signed initial production contracts for key defense systems such as Patriot air-defense platforms, manufacturing the newly ordered equipment is expected to take up to two years. As a result, there is reportedly no immediate solution to the current shortage of missile inventories.
The newspaper also reported that during the first month of the conflict alone, U.S. forces launched more than 850 Tomahawk cruise missiles, over 1,000 Patriot and THAAD air-defense interceptors, and more than 1,300 Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) missiles. The report claims that ATACMS stockpiles—which are also in demand by Ukraine—have been reduced to critically low levels.
According to the report, when Trump questioned Hegseth at Camp David about the declining weapons reserves, the defense secretary defended his performance and reportedly shifted responsibility to his deputy, Stephen Feinberg, claiming that Feinberg had failed to keep the White House informed in a timely manner.
However, the White House strongly denied the account of tensions between Trump and Hegseth.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt dismissed the report in a statement, saying, "This is 100 percent fake news. It never happened, and President Trump has complete confidence in Secretary Hegseth."
Similarly, Pentagon chief spokesperson Sean Parnell rejected the claims of internal disagreements, stating that Hegseth had not misled anyone about U.S. ammunition levels and had not blamed Deputy Secretary Feinberg. Parnell described the allegations regarding depleted stockpiles, internal disputes, and the defense secretary's position on Iran as entirely fabricated.
