Pentagon Urges Arms Makers To 'Double Or Even Quadruple’ Missile Production With Eye On China

Via The Cradle

The US Defense Department has ordered suppliers to double or „even quadruple” production rates on a “breakneck” schedule over fears about a depletion of arms stockpiles and a potential confrontation with China in the future, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported.

According to WSJ, „Military leaders are urging defense contractors to increase assembly of 12 critical weapons.”The list includes Patriot interceptor missiles, long-range anti-ship missiles, Standard Missile-6 missiles, Precision Strike missiles, and Joint Air-to-Surface Missiles. Patriot is a particular priority, given Lockheed Martin’s efforts to keep up with growing global demand.

US Army file image

Informed sources said there have been a series of recent high-level meetings between Pentagon officials and representatives of missile manufacturing companies.

US Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg is taking a direct role in this effort – called the Munitions Production Acceleration Council – and is calling company executives weekly to discuss the matter, according to the sources.

The Defense Department invited major missile suppliers to a roundtable meeting at the Pentagon in June to launch this effort. The meeting was attended by US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and General Dan Keane, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. It included executives from several weapons manufacturers.

However, the report notes that stakeholders fear Washington’s goals are „unrealistic,” and that questions are arising about the funding needed to accelerate production.

Some suppliers have struggled to meet the new demands and are wary of overbuying orders that have not yet been funded by the government.

The WSJ report comes a few days after the Washington Post said an „unusual” meeting of hundreds of top US military leaders has been ordered by Hegseth. „The highly unusual directive was sent to virtually all of the military’s top commanders worldwide,” the newspaper wrote, citing more than a dozen people familiar with the matter.

The announcement comes months after Hegseth revealed plans to carry out a major consolidation of top military commands. Hegseth’s abrupt call for such an emergency meeting has led to concerns of a coming conflict.

A senior Pentagon official said, „In my 30 years in the US military, I have never seen anything like this. We might be on the brink of war.” Monday’s report is not the first to note official concerns over low stockpiles.

China reportedly conducted a successful intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) test, with videos showing a depressed trajectory launch possibly using hypersonic boost-glide tech for maneuverability and speed. pic.twitter.com/mD3E8DDxfG

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During this year’s US campaign against Yemen, which ended in May, Washington burned through at least $1 billion in munitions. This raised concerns in the defense community that the US military would be left unprepared and would face „real operational problems” if a conflict with China were to erupt, according to the New York Times (NYT).

Analysts have also recently suggested the possibility of a new war between Israel and Iran, which Tel Aviv is likely to involve Washington in.

Israel was close to running out of interceptors during the 12-day war with Iran in June, which was mentioned in several reports. According to a WSJ report from June, Washington feared it would burn through its own interceptors while replenishing Israel’s stockpiles.