USAupdated 1h ago3 min read
Archive photo · 7 September 2018Pentagon Tells U.S. Lawmakers Iran War Costs $47.1 Billion for Taxpayers
5 West Asian4 Western Mainstream3 Latin American3 OtherPhoto: Touch Of Light, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Cropped for layout
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Pentagon estimates U.S. spending on the Iran war at about $47.1 billion through mid-October. Major portion covers replenishing expended munitions, roughly $29 billion, with $6.1 billion for lost equipment.
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Pentagon cost estimate rises
The Pentagon told lawmakers in the United States that the war on Iran has cost American taxpayers at least $47.1bn so far, as the estimate was disclosed last week ahead of the November 3 midterm elections. The Pentagon’s cost estimate, current through October 16, said the war’s operational costs included a projected $29bn needed to replace expended munitions such as bombs and bullets. The estimate also said the US Air Force spent $7.6bn on fighter and bomber units, while the US Navy spent $1.5bn on two dozen warships and aircraft carriers, and the US Army spent $2.1bn to sustain its troops in the Middle East.
The estimate further said the Pentagon spent $6.1bn to replace damaged aircraft and munitions, $645m on transport and support for commandos, and $24.5m on “in-house medical support” for US service members. The estimate did not include how much Washington will need to spend to repair damaged military bases across the Middle East and did not take into account the cost of fuel needed to power ships and aircraft used in the war.
Households feel the burden
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said, “For eight months, American families have been buried by the heavy cost of Trump’s disastrous war in Iran,” after the Pentagon estimate was shared with lawmakers. Moody Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi said on October 12 that the war has cost American households up to about $2,000 on average so far, including $1,100 due to higher energy costs, $540 due to increased borrowing costs, and $360 due to higher military spending. The Pentagon estimate also fed into a dispute over casualties, because the Pentagon publicly acknowledged 18 US service member fatalities while The Washington Post cited six unnamed US officials saying the true death toll is at least 22.
The Pentagon’s Defense Casualty Analysis System (DCAS) database listed 865 military personnel wounded in the war with Iran, according to the Al Jazeera account. The conflict’s economic pressure also showed up in energy costs, because the Al Jazeera report said diesel has nearly doubled in price in the United States.
Politics and next steps
USA Today reported that five senators from the Democratic Party had written to Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of US Central Command, demanding that the Pentagon reveal the true cost of the war. The senators’ letter said the Trump administration’s “ongoing efforts to hide the true cost of this war are outrageous and unacceptable,” and the report said Trump had not commented on the latest Pentagon estimate. The Pentagon estimate compared with the $38bn that the Congressional Budget Office forecast in September, and it also exceeded the $37.5bn price tag that US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gave in July.
CBS News said the Congressional Budget Office calculated the war could cost $2 billion to $3 billion per month for as long as it continues, in part due to the need to replace interceptor missiles. President Trump suggested he might restart hostilities with Iran after next month’s midterm elections unless Iran agrees to a deal, and he told supporters, “We may do another little Epic Fury, or they'll agree,” during a rally in Florida last week.