Tehran has firmly rejected claims circulating in Western media that Iran’s weapons capability and missile stockpile have been depleted. Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Naqdi, senior adviser to the commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), said more than 90 percent of Iran’s strategic missile stockpile remains completely intact.
In an interview with Al-Mayadeen, the military official emphasized the self-sufficiency and long-term sustainability of Iran’s missile production network.
Naqdi said Iran’s own underground production facilities continue to manufacture missiles regularly and at a highly effective rate. The quantity of missiles expended in military operations is being quickly replenished through this domestic production, he said, meaning Tehran’s military capability remains as strong as before.
Meanwhile, some assessment reports recently published by major US media outlets have challenged the White House’s claim that US military operations succeeded in destroying Iran’s missile and drone capabilities.
The US media reports said recent military strikes completely failed to neutralize Iran’s robust underground missile network and drone-launch platforms.
The US media reports instead suggested that the prolonged geopolitical conflict has created major shortfalls in America’s own air-defense stockpiles.
Citing US military officials, the reports said Washington has had to use high-end interceptor missiles — including Patriot and THAAD defense systems — to counter Iran’s sustained, multi-pronged attacks. But these are being depleted far faster than the US defense industry can newly produce them, the reports said, creating significant strategic and military pressure on the US administration over the long term, according to analysts.