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, Anadolu reports.
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.”
