Trump has ordered U.S. defense contractors to ramp up weapons production
On June 17, U.S. President Donald Trump exercised his executive authority and directed American defense companies to accelerate and increase weapons production. The decision was made amid a shortage of stockpiles depleted during the war with Iran.
According to a memorandum published Tuesday in the Federal Register, Trump privately invoked the Defense Production Act last week to address the ammunition shortage.
“I hereby determine that conditions exist that may pose a direct threat to national defense or its readiness programs,” reads Trump’s June 11 memorandum addressed to Defense Secretary Pete Hagseth.
The document also notes that limited production capacity and supply chain issues “could impair the United States’ ability to produce, maintain, and build up stocks of ammunition, missiles, and military equipment necessary for national defense.”
On Tuesday, Hagseth met with Republican senators on Capitol Hill to discuss the approval of $350 billion in additional defense funding. The administration insists that these funds will, in particular, be used to replenish ammunition stocks.
The Defense Production Act is a piece of legislation from the 1950s that grants the president broad powers to expedite the supply of materials, including by prioritizing the fulfillment of government orders by private companies. It also allows for coordination among companies in ways that would normally be considered collusion or a violation of competition laws. The U.S. frequently resorts to this mechanism to respond to emergencies—ranging from natural disasters and terrorist attacks to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Administration officials have been expressing concern about dwindling stockpiles for several months, and Trump has publicly called on defense contractors to produce more ammunition. In March, just a few days after the start of the war with Iran, representatives of the Trump administration discussed with lawmakers the idea of invoking the Defense Production Act to accelerate ammunition production.
However, publicly, the White House insisted that there were sufficient weapons.
“We have an unlimited supply of medium- and long-range ammunition, which we are using in this war,” Trump said at the time, referring to the war against Iran.
Last Friday, Trump was scheduled to meet with defense industry executives to discuss the depletion of ammunition stocks, but the meeting was postponed to this week or next due to negotiations between the U.S. and Iran regarding an end to the war, sources told the publication.
Source:NBC
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