Trump held back large-scale Iran strike over shortage of air defense missiles

President Donald Trump held back a large-scale strike on Iran after advisers warned that US military air defense missile stockpiles in the Middle East were running dangerously low.

According to The New York Times, at a closed-door meeting Saturday, Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Caine told Trump that while resuming large-scale combat operations against Iran was possible, doing so would drain US interceptor missile supplies to a dangerous level.

Officials raised concerns that an escalation of the war could critically deplete already-diminished stocks of air defense assets in the region, including Patriot interceptor missiles.

Just days earlier, some Defense Ministry officials and US military commanders had assessed that Trump appeared to be leaning toward approving the first phase of a multi-stage bombing campaign against Iran. The Pentagon had also dispatched additional military assets to the Middle East, including aerial refueling tankers capable of supporting a full-scale air campaign against Iran.

Trump signaled an aggressive posture in an interview with Axios on Thursday, saying, "We're looking at a major attack — bigger than anything before," and adding, "We are fully prepared."

However, The New York Times said military leaders assessed that ammunition stocks needed to defend US forces stationed in Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain and the UAE were dwindling, and that Trump appeared to have shelved the Iran bombing plan that day as a result.

US military bases in those countries had come under intense Iranian attack over the previous two weeks. A large-scale US strike would likely trigger a fierce Iranian counterstrike, placing additional strain on US air defenses.

The New York Times reported in April that since the outbreak of the war with Iran, the United States had expended more than 1,200 Patriot missiles and other munitions, bringing weapons stockpiles to worryingly low levels. Each Patriot missile costs more than $4 million.

The stockpile situation deteriorated further this week. Sources said few among Trump's advisers believed escalating the conflict with Iran was wise.

One senior official expressed doubt that resuming large-scale combat would bring Iran back to the negotiating table, warning it could instead backfire by rallying domestic support within Iran and sharpening its focus on an external threat.

The armed conflict entered a lull after the US halted its 13-day air campaign against Iran on Friday, marking a two-week pause in hostilities between the two sides.