Iran has retained most of its missile capabilities following the strikes, according to U.S. intelligence
Classified U.S. intelligence assessments indicate that Iran has retained a significant portion of its missile capabilities and regained access to most of its key military facilities, despite claims by the U.S. administration that Iranian forces have been severely weakened.
The New York Times reports this, citing informed sources.
According to the publication, Washington’s greatest concern is that Iran has regained operational access to 30 of 33 missile sites along the Strait of Hormuz. This could pose a threat to U.S. military ships and oil tankers passing through the strategically important waterway.
Intelligence also estimates that Tehran has retained about 70% of its mobile launchers and approximately 70% of its pre-war missile stockpile, including ballistic missiles and some cruise missiles.
In addition, about 90% of underground missile silos and launch sites across the country remain “partially or fully functional.”
According to sources, the Iranian military can use mobile launchers to move missiles between facilities, as well as launch missiles directly from within the complexes.
At the same time, U.S. intelligence data indicates that the U.S. expended significant stocks of precision-guided munitions during the operations, including Tomahawk cruise missiles and Patriot interceptor missiles.
The report notes that approximately 1,100 long-range cruise missiles and over 1,000 Tomahawk missiles were used, exceeding the annual production capacity of the U.S. defense sector.
According to estimates by sources at The New York Times, replenishing these arsenals could take years.
The Pentagon is discussing the possibility of renaming the U.S. military operation against Iran in the event of a final breakdown of the ceasefire. The new name for the mission could be “Sledgehammer.”
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In addition, U.S. President Donald Trump announced that he plans to hold an extended conversation with Chinese leader Xi Jinping regarding the war with Iran. At the same time, he emphasized that he does not consider it necessary to involve China as a mediator to resolve the conflict.
U.S. President Donald Trump is becoming increasingly frustrated with the progress of negotiations with Iran to end the conflict and is considering the possibility of resuming large-scale military operations against Tehran.
