Ousted US general warned of missile defence shortages lasting until 2030, report says

A former US Army chief of staff warned before the war that missile defence stockpiles were critically low and could take until 2030 to recover, according to a CBS News investigation published on Thursday JPost.

Multiple US officials told CBS that Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George’s risk analysis was included in the Pentagon’s Global Force Management Allocation Plan in late December 2025, two months before the war began TRT World. George was removed by Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth in April Anadolu.

Officials attributed the shortfall to Patriot transfers to Ukraine, munitions expended defending Israel, and limited defence industry production capacity JPost. The assessment identified THAAD interceptor and Patriot missile shortages expected to remain strategically low until 2030 TRT World.

CSIS estimated the US entered 2026 with about 2,300 Patriot interceptors, of which between 1,050 and 1,430 were expended in the war Anadolu. Pre-war THAAD inventory stood at about 355 interceptors, of which 190 to 290 were expended JPost. New THAAD contracts take over four years to fulfil, while Patriot PAC-3 orders average three and a half years TRT World.

Mark Cancian, a retired Marine colonel and CSIS senior adviser, told CBS the systems would be crucial in a potential conflict with China: “Air defense, missile defense, that will be huge” TRT World.

The Pentagon rejected the claims. Chief spokesman Sean Parnell told CBS: “Claims of U.S. munitions shortages are false,” adding Washington retains “everything required to strike at the time and place of the President’s choosing” Anadolu.