Pentagon Watchdog Details Iran War Costs: Weapons Shortfalls, Base Damage
Pentagon inspector general's first report on the Iran war reveals advanced weapons shortfalls, damage to U.S. bases and aircraft, and $184 million in diplomatic facility costs.
The Pentagon's inspector general has released its first comprehensive assessment of the Iran war's impact on U.S. military readiness and regional infrastructure, offering the most complete official accounting to date of the conflict's costs in lives, taxpayer dollars and physical damage.
The report, covering the period from April 1 to June 30, confirms that the war has produced strategic inventory shortfalls and exposed industrial base bottlenecks for munitions resupply, particularly for advanced weapons. Experts have previously estimated that military contractors will need roughly three years to restore stocks of advanced missiles and defensive interceptors to prewar levels.
Iranian strikes damaged or destroyed hundreds of buildings and other structures at U.S. bases across Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman and Jordan. Dozens of American aircraft and drones were also destroyed or damaged during the same period.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told Congress in late July that the war had cost $37.5 billion so far.
The report also provides the first public accounting of damage to U.S. diplomatic facilities. Outposts in Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the UAE sustained the heaviest physical damage, with estimated costs of $184 million. The State Department had previously reported in early June that its overall conflict-related costs reached $113 million, with nearly $80 million allocated to contingency responses, including evacuations.
In the weeks and months following the initial U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, the Trump administration evacuated approximately 9,000 U.S. citizens from countries across the Middle East and Europe. The evacuation operation, conducted through private and commercial flights as well as land and water travel, cost more than $11 million as of late June. The report noted that consular officers could not fully document travel itineraries required for reimbursement, making it impractical to seek repayment from evacuees.
The majority of evacuations originated from Israel, followed by Iraq and Jordan. Although only 1,200 Americans were evacuated from the UAE, those trips to Istanbul, Athens and Washington proved the most expensive, exceeding $4 million.
During the same span, more than $44 billion in emergency and non-emergency military sales were made, with the majority going to Saudi Arabia. The sales included military helicopters, munitions and munitions support, as well as advanced precision weapons systems. Other regional countries, including Qatar, Kuwait, the UAE and Israel, also received billions in sales as Iran retaliated against nearly every country in the region hosting a U.S. military base.