TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — US Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby said Tuesday that reports of dwindling US munitions stockpiles following strikes on Iran should not be misread as weakening deterrence in the Taiwan Strait.
Colby appeared before the US Senate Armed Services Committee to testify on defense strategy, with US military operations against Iran a focal point of questioning, per CNA. Senator Dan Sullivan asked whether Colby had a message for any country that might view reports of low US munitions reserves as a window to act against Taiwan, and whether progress had been made in bolstering the defense industrial base.
On Sunday, The Wall Street Journal reported that US operations against Iran had rapidly depleted air defense interceptors. The US has also been consuming sea-launched Tomahawk cruise missiles and air-launched munitions in strikes on Iranian targets.
Colby said US President Donald Trump has “the will and resolve to use the American military. He's not afraid of it.” He added that potential adversaries are watching the capabilities of the joint force and are being deterred by US readiness.
He emphasized that the US is making progress on building up the industrial base for munitions. “I think we need to work hard on the defense industrial base,” he said, “but nobody should get the wrong impression, we're ahead of the problem.”
Senator Jim Banks asked how toppling the Iranian regime would affect the US’s ability to confront coordinated aggression across other theaters. Colby said weakening the Iranian regime would free up US assets to be assigned to the Indo-Pacific region.
He said both Israel and Gulf partners have shown a willingness to assume greater responsibility for maintaining security in the Middle East. As a result, Colby said that while the US will continue to play an important military role in the region, it will “allow us to enable this focus on the first island chain.”
