The $25 billion figure announced by the Pentagon for the war with Iran, according to CNN, does not reflect the full picture of expenses. It does not include costs for restoring damaged military bases and replacing lost property, which significantly increases the total cost of the conflict.
According to CNN, the real estimate is closer to $40-50 billion when accounting for the costs of restoring military facilities and replacing destroyed property. The network reminds that Iranian retaliatory strikes in the early days of the war caused significant damage to at least nine U.S. military facilities.
Acting U.S. Under Secretary of Defense for Finance Jules Hurst, speaking on Wednesday before the House Armed Services Committee, stated that a large portion of the $25 billion he mentioned was spent on munitions. The network emphasizes that Pentagon chief Pete Hegset declined to clarify whether this figure includes repair costs for the bases.
According to Hurst, the Pentagon cannot yet provide a final figure for the damage to overseas facilities. Repair costs for these facilities are not reflected in the Pentagon's $1.5 trillion budget request for the 2027 fiscal year, which proposes a 42% increase in funding for the military department, the network highlights.
According to CNN, the Pentagon previously reported that expenses during the first six days of the war amounted to about $11 billion.
When considering all associated costs, the total price of the war could nearly double. This increases pressure on the U.S. defense budget and underscores that the real financial consequences of military conflicts often turn out to be significantly higher than initial estimates, writes bb.lv.
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