Iran-US war latest: US military facing weapons shortages after dozens of aircraft destroyed as cost of war hits $33bn

Trump says he is open to negotiations to end the war with Iran, but stresses the final decision rests with him

Shweta Sharma & Alex Croft

The US military is facing a weapons shortages after dozens of aircraft have been destroyed in its war on Iran, the Pentagon has said, as the cost of the war hit $33.4 billion (£24.8 bn).

In a report to Congress on Monday, the Defense Department’s inspector general noted the destruction of four F-15 fighter jets and as many as 30 MQ-9 Reaper drones, and damage to one F-35 jet and seven KC-135 tanker aircraft.

It also said that Iranian attacks had “damaged and destroyed hundreds of buildings and structures at US bases in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman, and Jordan during the conflict”.

Some $22.3bn of cost is down to expended munitions, the report said.

Between 28 February and 30 June, Operation Epic Fury has caused “strategic inventory shortfalls and revealed industrial base bottlenecks for munitions resupply”.

It comes as President Donald Trump has said he is “open” to negotiations to end the war with Iran, but stressed the final decision rests with him.

Iranian foreign minister to meet Chinese counterpart in Beijing

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi is set to visit China on 16 September, the foreign ministry in Beijing has said.

Araghchi will meet with Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi.

The pair met in Kyrgyzstan in late July, where they discussed the situation in the Middle East, described in a statement by the Chinese mission to the UN as a “matter of deep concern to China”.

UN Security Council to hold meeting over the Bab el-Mandeb Strait

The UN Security Council will hold a meeting on Tuesday to discuss the situation in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, two French diplomats have told the Reuters news agency.

The meeting, which was called by France, will be held on Tuesday afternoon, New York time, they said.

Trump: Countries must reimburse us for securing Strait of Hormuz

Donald Trump has demanded that the “Countries of the World” pay the US for its military action to secure the Strait of Hormuz.

"The Countries of the World, which have been no help to us whatsoever, should, and will, reimburse the United States of America when this SCAM Confligration is all over,” he wrote in a post on Truth Social.

The US president was repeating his claim that Tehran “wants to make a deal, quickly and badly”.

He added: "I will determine whether or not the U.S.A. will choose to engage - The concept of which we are open to."

US facing weapons shortages after dozens of aircraft destroyed - as cost of war hits $33bn

The US military is facing weapons shortages as a result of its war on Iran, the Defense Department’s inspector general has said, after dozens of aircraft were destroyed in the region.

In a report to Congress on Monday, the inspector estimated that the US war on Iran has cost Washington $33.4 billion (£24.8 bn), most of which was spent on expended munitions.

The US military has lost dozens of aircraft, including the destruction of four F-15 fighter jets and as many as 30 MQ-9 Reaper drones, and damage to one F-35 jet and seven KC-135 tanker aircraft.

"Iranian strikes damaged and destroyed hundreds of buildings and structures at US bases in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman, and Jordan during the conflict," the report says, without confirming what the cost was of the damage to these buildings.

Between 28 February and 30 June, Operation Epic Fury has caused “strategic inventory shortfalls and revealed industrial base bottlenecks for munitions resupply”.