They say Trump destroyed it… “Iran still possesses thousands of missiles.”
(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Dong-hyun = The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 11th (local time) that U.S. intelligence authorities believe Iran still has thousands of ballistic missiles and can take out a launch pad underground and use them. Despite more than a month of attacks by the U.S. and Israel, Iran is considered to have significant missile capabilities, which is different from what senior Trump administration officials have publicly said.
According to the WSJ report, U.S. officials say more than half of Iran's missile launchers have been destroyed, damaged, and buried underground, but many of these launchers can be repaired or dug up and used again at underground facilities. Iran's missile stockpile has been reduced by about half through the war, but thousands of short- and medium-range ballistic missiles are stored in hiding places and underground facilities. Israeli officials estimated that Iran had about 2,500 intermediate-range ballistic missiles at the start of the war and still more than 1,000.
The same goes for drones. As Iran uses a large number of drones in the war and Iran's weapons production facilities are damaged by attacks from the United States and Israel, the number of drones owned by Iran has been reduced to less than half. However, U.S. officials say Iran can procure similar drones from Russia and use them in attacks. Considering the intensity of airstrikes conducted by the U.S. and Israel on Iran's defense industry, it is not easy for Iran to secure the same level of missiles and drones as before the war in a short period of time, but some capabilities can be restored.
Iran has shown remarkable ability in quickly innovating and rebuilding their power, said Kenneth Pollock, vice president of policy at the Middle East Research Institute, a former CIA analyst. "Iran is much stronger than most troops in the Middle East except Israel."
However, the Trump administration says it has fully achieved its military goals in the war against Iran. Defense Minister Pete Hegseth told reporters last week that Iran's missile capabilities were "fundamentally destroyed" and that Iran's missiles and launchers were "burned out, greatly weakened, and almost completely incapacitated." Dan Kane, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, also said at a press conference on the 8th, the day after the ceasefire, that Iran's defense industry foundation was shattered. Kane said the U.S. attacked Iran's missile and drone storage facilities, navy and defense industries with more than 13,000 missiles and bombs to prevent Iran from restoring its ability to project power outside its borders.
U.S. President Donald Trump also told reporters at Andrews Joint Base on the 10th, "Iran's military has been repelled and disappeared," adding, "They have very few missiles, and their manufacturing capabilities are very small." Israeli officials say Iran fired dozens of missiles daily in the early days of the war, but continued U.S.-Israel airstrikes have reduced the frequency of launches to 10-15 per day for much of the war. In addition, Iran is currently unable to manufacture more missiles. The speed at which Iran restores its defense industry depends on what support it receives from Russia and China. International sanctions against Iran and export controls are also limiting Iran's military capabilities, and Iran demanded the lifting of all sanctions as a condition for the end of the war in negotiations with the United States.
Analysts say that one of the reasons why the U.S. cannot completely destroy Iran's missile capabilities is that it relies only on air strikes without the deployment of ground forces. When the U.S. fought Iraq in 1991, it sent special forces to Iraq with its ally Britain, rather than using only air power to destroy the Iraqi military's mobile Scud missile launcher, the WSJ explained. In addition, Iran's missile facilities are deep underground in the mountains. Israel focused its airstrikes on the collapse of the entrance to the underground shaft where missile launchers come and go, but struggled to destroy the underground facility itself. @yna.co.kr">bluekey@yna.co.kr Kim Dong Hyun (@yna.co.kr">bluekey@yna.co.kr )
Trump is indulging in his own delusions. It’s becoming a situation where I can’t help but wonder — who was this war really for?