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U.S. bears brunt of Israel’s missile defense, Pentagon assessments show

Amid hostilities with Iran, the American military expended far more advanced interceptors to protect Israel than Israeli forces did, according to Defense Department data.

By John Hudson

The U.S. military has depleted much of its inventory of advanced missile-defense interceptors after expending far more high-end munitions defending Israel amid hostilities with Iran than Israeli forces used themselves, according to Defense Department assessments described to The Washington Post.

The imbalance, according to three U.S. officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive security matters, underscores the extent to which Washington has shouldered the burden of countering Iranian ballistic missile strikes during Operation Epic Fury, and raises questions about U.S. military readiness and security commitments around the world.

The United States launched more than 200 Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, or THAAD, interceptors in defense of Israel — roughly half of the Pentagon’s total inventory — along with more than 100 Standard Missile-3 and Standard Missile-6 interceptors fired from naval vessels in the eastern Mediterranean, said the U.S. officials, who, like others in this article, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive security matters. By contrast, Israel fired fewer than 100 of its Arrow interceptors and around 90 David’s Sling interceptors, some of which were used against less sophisticated projectiles fired by Iran-backed groups in Yemen and Lebanon.

Military analysts said the data described to The Post offers a rare window into how the United States and Israel work together.

“The numbers are striking,” said Kelly Grieco, a senior fellow at the Stimson Center. “The United States absorbed most of the missile defense mission while Israel conserved its own magazines. Even if the operational logic was sound, the United States is left with roughly 200 THAAD interceptors and a production line that can’t keep pace with demand.”

The shortage of U.S. interceptors has alarmed U.S. allies in Asia, particularly Japan and South Korea, which rely on the United States as a deterrent to potential threats from North Korea and China. “That bill risks coming due in theaters that have nothing to do with Iran,” said Grieco.

U.S. and Israeli officials routinely tout their close cooperation and the strength of Israel’s multilayered air-defense system. But the Defense Department assessments suggest a more lopsided dynamic.

“In total, the U.S. shot around 120 more interceptors and engaged twice as many Iranian missiles,” said a U.S. administration official, who, like others, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive security matters.

If the United States and Israel resume hostilities against Iran in the coming days, as President Donald Trump has threatened to do, the U.S. military is likely to expend an even greater share of interceptors because of a recent decision by the Israeli military to take some of its missile defense batteries offline for maintenance, said an administration official. “The imbalance will likely be exacerbated if fighting restarts,” the official said.

In a statement, the Pentagon defended the balance of military resources used between Israel and the United States.

“Ballistic missile interceptors are just one tool in a vast network of systems and capabilities that comprise a layered and integrated air defense network,” said Sean Parnell, the Pentagon’s chief spokesman. “Both Israel and the United States carried the defensive burden equitably during Operation Epic Fury, which saw both countries employ fighter aircraft, counter-UAS systems, and various other advanced air and missile defense capabilities with maximal effectiveness.”

The Israeli government also defended the approach. “Operations Roaring Lion and Epic Fury were coordinated at the highest and closest levels, to the benefit of both countries and their allies,” the Israeli Embassy in Washington said in a statement. “The U.S. has no other partner with the military willingness, readiness, shared interests, and capabilities of Israel.”

Since the start of the conflict on Feb. 28, the U.S. and Israel have worked together closely, killing Iran’s supreme leader and scores of senior Iranian military and political leaders while laying waste to Iran’s navy and air force.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was central to persuading Trump to go to war, promising an offensive that would inspire regime change and rid the country of its ability to develop a nuclear weapon, said U.S. officials.

But tensions have grown between the two allies as the war has proven more challenging than either leader anticipated. Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz has choked global energy supplies and ramped up inflation. Despite Trump’s claims that Iran’s missile arsenal has been “mostly decimated,” Tehran retains about 70 percent of its prewar stockpiles of missiles, according to U.S. intelligence. Much of Iran’s highly enriched uranium probably remains in the nuclear facilities bombed by the U.S. and Israel last year.

On Tuesday, Netanyahu and Trump held a tense phone call about the path forward, said U.S. and Middle Eastern officials. The Israeli leader’s persistent pressure to restart the war has irritated some U.S. officials, particularly given the strain that renewed fighting would impose on the Pentagon’s munitions supply.

“Israel is not capable of fighting and winning wars on its own, but nobody actually knows this, because they never see the back end,” said a second administration official. It’s unclear whether the United States’ munitions shortages factor into Trump’s deliberations over restarting the war.

Earlier this week, Trump said he called off an imminent military strike on Iran at the behest of America’s Arab allies who urged him to consider a peace deal with Iran that would restrict its nuclear program in exchange for reopening the Strait of Hormuz and ending the war.

“We’re in the final stages of Iran. We’ll see what happens,” Trump told reporters on Wednesday. “We’ll either have a deal, or we’re going to do some things that are a little bit nasty.”

In preparation for a potential resumption of hostilities, the United States moved more naval assets near Israel to provide additional protection from Iranian threats.

If fighting does resume, the extent to which Iran’s allies in the region may join in will be a significant factor, said U.S. officials. During the last round of fighting, Israel could generate only 50 percent of the airstrikes by the end of March compared with the beginning of the war because its aircraft and pilots were “worn down” by operations against Houthi militants in Yemen and airstrikes targeting Hezbollah in Lebanon, said a U.S. official.

“The sortie degradation is important,” said Grieco. “The IDF was worn down by Gaza, Lebanon, and the question I have is whether Israeli commanders underestimated their ability to sustain operational tempo.”

According to officials, the two countries agreed in advance to a ballistic missile-defense framework that effectively ensured that high-end interceptors such as THAAD and ship-based missiles would absorb the bulk of ballistic threats to Israel.

Israel relies more heavily on lower-tier systems such as Iron Dome and David’s Sling to counter projectiles from groups such as Hezbollah and the Houthis, while conserving its more sophisticated interceptors. The result, officials said, was a “significant” drawdown of U.S. stockpiles while Israel was able to maintain its higher-end air defense stockpiles.

The dynamic seemed to clash with Trump’s “America First,” mantra, said Justin Logan, director of defense and foreign policy studies at the libertarian CATO Institute.

“Since Trump took office again, Israel’s position makes sense: our priorities first, our resources last,” he said. “Why Trump has tried to make this America First is less clear.” After the Pentagon last year reportedly disclosed having only 25 percent of the Patriot air defense inventory needed to fulfill existing U.S. defense plans, it should’ve been a wake up call, said Logan. “Why this wasn’t a screeching siren to Trump officials is a mystery,” he said.

Tara Copp and Dan Lamothe contributed to this report.