The US Department of War has submitted a request to Congress, stating that the department needs $80 billion (about RM330.7 billion) to "cover" the costs of the Iran conflict and other related expenses.
According to sources familiar with the matter, citing statements from multiple US lawmakers, Deputy Secretary of War Vanberg informed them of this figure during a phone call this week. Meanwhile, Secretary of War Hagseth met with senior Republican senators this week to discuss additional increases in defense appropriations.
US Department of War officials stated that without additional funding, the US military may run out of funds for military operations this summer.
At the end of February, the United States and Israel launched military strikes against Iran. US President Trump confirmed on March 19 that the Department of War had requested an additional budget of about $200 billion from Congress to support military operations against Iran. However, this request was immediately met with strong opposition from some lawmakers.
Sources said that lawmakers have been pressuring the government to provide specific figures regarding the costs of the Iran conflict. As the US and Iran recently remotely signed a memorandum of understanding, just how much the Iran conflict has "burned through" has once again become a hot topic in the US Congress.
A Pentagon official revealed in April that the US has already spent about $25 billion on the Iran conflict. According to this statement, this is the first time US officials have publicly assessed the cost of the Iran conflict.