The Wall Street Journal has reported, citing officials, that US President Donald Trump ordered an investigation into leaks concerning the depletion of ammunition stockpiles linked to the war with Iran.
The officials said Trump believes reports about ammunition levels could embolden the Iranian government and weaken Washington’s efforts to restrain Tehran’s nuclear programme.
Trump also held a phone call with the deputy secretary of war to discuss ammunition levels at the Pentagon.
According to the newspaper, senior officials were summoned to a meeting last week to discuss ways to increase production of critical munitions.
Pentagon officials also held secret meetings with Republican lawmakers in an effort to build support for a spending request, the newspaper reported.
Officials maintained that the United States still possesses more firepower than would be required for any operation ordered by the president.
Reported confrontation over ammunition shortages
On Wednesday, The Washington Post reported that Trump had engaged in a heated confrontation with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth during a meeting at Camp David last week.
Sources familiar with the matter said the confrontation came amid growing concerns over severe shortages in ammunition stockpiles and interceptor missiles being used in the war with Iran.
The sources said Trump’s anger peaked during the meeting, when he demanded explanations from Hegseth over what he viewed as misleading information about the true scale of the ammunition crisis, which could limit US military options in dealing with Iran.
US officials told the newspaper that Trump’s dissatisfaction with Hegseth had intensified in recent days amid developments in the war with Iran.
According to the report, Hegseth had been among the administration’s strongest advocates of military action against Iran and had convinced Trump that the operation would amount to a “quick and relatively easy victory”.
Trump’s frustration reportedly grew as military operations continued and battlefield challenges emerged, particularly amid fears that ammunition reserves were being depleted, fuelling tensions within the administration over the conduct of the war.
White House denies rift
The White House denied The Washington Post’s account of a confrontation between Trump and Hegseth.
The newspaper quoted the White House press secretary as saying Hegseth “has the full confidence of President Trump”.
She also described reports of disagreements between the two men as “completely fake news”.
The newspaper further quoted a War Department spokesperson denying that Hegseth had misled the president about ammunition stockpiles or blamed his deputy, Stephen Feinberg.
“The claims that stockpiles are running out, that there are internal disagreements, or regarding Hegseth’s position on Iran are nothing more than pure fiction,” the spokesperson said, rejecting the report’s account of tensions over the management of the war with Iran.
