Delay in U.S. Weapons Delivery Due to War with Iran Sparks Complaints from Europe and Japan

According to a report by Reference News Network on April 19, Reuters reported on April 16 that five informed sources said U.S. officials have notified some European officials that due to the ongoing war in Iran depleting U.S. weapon stockpiles, some previously scheduled weapons deliveries may be delayed.

The report states that several European countries will be affected by the delayed weapon deliveries, including some countries located in the Baltic Sea and the Scandinavian Peninsula.

The situation of delayed deliveries highlights that the U.S.-Israeli joint airstrikes against Iran have strained some of the U.S.'s key weapons and ammunition supplies.

European officials have complained that the delays in weapon deliveries have put them in a difficult position. At the request of Trump, Washington has been urging European NATO partners to purchase more U.S.-made weapons, thereby shifting the conventional defense responsibilities from the U.S. to European partners.

However, these weapon deliveries are often delayed, which has frustrated European governments, and some European officials are increasingly inclined to purchase European-made weapon systems.

U.S. officials have stated that these weapons are needed for the conflict in the Middle East, while they accuse European countries of not providing assistance to the U.S. and Israel in maintaining navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.

Since the start of the war in Iran, Tehran has launched hundreds of ballistic missiles and drones at Gulf countries, and the defense systems used to intercept these incoming weapons include the Patriot PAC-3 missiles, which are the weapons Ukraine relies on to protect its energy and military infrastructure from missile attacks.

The sources did not disclose the names of the affected European countries, as some of these countries share borders with Russia, and the pace of weapon deliveries could be considered sensitive defense information.

However, the sources indicated that the delayed deliveries include various munitions that can be used for both offensive and defensive purposes.

According to a report by Japan's Asahi Shimbun on April 16, it has been learned that the U.S. government has informed the Japanese government that the delivery of the U.S.-made Tomahawk cruise missiles purchased by Japan may be delayed. The U.S. has consumed a large number of such missiles during its strikes against Iran, leading to a depletion of its stockpile. Japan has regarded the Tomahawk as a key piece of equipment for building its "capability to strike enemy bases" (i.e., counterattack capability), and the delay in delivery is bound to impact the original deployment plans.

The report states that the Japanese government formally proposed to acquire the "capability to strike enemy bases" in the three security documents revised at the end of 2022. As a transitional measure before deploying domestically produced long-range missiles, Japan plans to procure up to 400 Tomahawk missiles before the fiscal year 2027.

Although the Ministry of Defense announced at the end of March that the Tomahawk cruise missiles have begun to be delivered, considering the various circumstances currently faced by the U.S., future deliveries and subsequent deployments are likely to be delayed.

The issue of missile shortages in U.S. stockpiles due to the U.S.-Israeli-Iran conflict has posed a severe challenge. Concerns within the Japanese government are also rising, as the delivery of other defense equipment purchased from the U.S. besides the Tomahawk missiles may also face further delays. The "reliance on the U.S." is generating a strong sense of crisis within the government.

Japan is procuring Patriot PAC-3 missiles and Standard-3 air defense interceptors from the U.S. through the U.S. Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program, but the U.S. military has also consumed a large number of these two types of missiles in its strikes against Iran, which has similarly raised concerns about delivery delays.

Fundamentally, the FMS mechanism allows the U.S. side to unilaterally change contract prices and delivery timelines, so the issue of delivery delays has always existed. (Translation/ Pan Xiaoyan Liu Lin)