US warns Europe of delays to arms shipments as Iran war drains stockpiles

Washington has warned European allies, including the UK, Poland, Lithuania and Estonia, to expect long delivery delays for US weapons as it scrambles to replenish stockpiles depleted by the Iran war, Report informs via Financial Times.

The Pentagon had told the countries to expect serious delays for several missile systems, according to nine people familiar with the matter. Two people said there were also talks about postponing shipments to Asia.

The delays are partly driven by acute concerns about US inventory levels given the high volume of weapons used in the past two months in Iran.

The American military has already been forced to move weapons from other regions, including the Indo-Pacific, to make up for the shortfalls.

But the Iran war has also deepened concerns about whether the US has a sufficient stockpile of weapons to deter Beijing or defeat China in any future conflict over Taiwan.

In addition to sparking alarm across Europe, the delays are bad news for Ukraine amid concerns about US support for the country after four years of war since Russia's full-scale invasion.

The delays will affect munitions for Himars, Nasams and other missile systems. Himars, which have been used in Ukraine, are highly mobile rocket systems made by Lockheed Martin.

Nasams are medium-range surface-to-air missile systems co-produced by Raytheon and Norway's Kongsberg.

The Pentagon said it was "carefully evaluating new requests for equipment from partners as well as existing arms transfer cases to ensure alignment with operational needs."

It declined to provide details, citing the "operationally sensitive nature of these matters."