NEW YORK, 23 August. - (ANA) - US allies are increasingly questioning Washington's capacity to sustain major military conflicts in the Middle East, Europe, and Asia simultaneously, as the war with Iran depletes critical weapons stockpiles and undermines the credibility of American security guarantees, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal.

 

The Iran conflict has burned through large shares of Patriot and THAAD interceptors, forcing the Pentagon to divert munitions once earmarked for European and Asian allies. Partners now openly doubt whether the US industrial base can replenish stocks quickly enough to fight on multiple fronts.

 

The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) estimates that the United States has already burned through:

 

- Half of its prewar stocks of missile interceptors (Patriots and THAADs)

 

- One-third of its Tomahawk and JASSM long-range missile arsenals

 

A Council on Foreign Relations expert study released this month concluded that "the US weapons arsenal has been depleted and no longer has the capacity to deter a Chinese attack against Taiwan." The study urged Washington to immediately place precision missile production on a wartime footing - warning that "waiting until conflict begins will be too late."

 

The old assumption that the US could always surge for any crisis is facing its first real test in decades. Allies - and adversaries - are watching closely whether industrial decline, strategic incoherence, and political dysfunction have weakened the US to the point where it would no longer wield decisive force in a multi-front conflict.   - (ANA) -

 

AB/ANA/23 August 2026 - - -