President Donald Trump reportedly confronted War Secretary Pete Hegseth during a meeting at Camp David after learning that dwindling U.S. missile stockpiles were limiting military options against Iran, according to a report published Wednesday by The Washington Post. The White House and Pentagon, however, strongly denied that any such confrontation took place.

Citing two individuals familiar with the discussions, The Washington Post reported that tensions surfaced during a Cabinet meeting last Friday, where Trump questioned Hegseth over why he had not been informed sooner about the extent of the nation’s shrinking missile inventory. According to the report, the President expressed frustration, saying he believed the problem “had been fixed.”

The newspaper said shortages of long-range precision-guided munitions and air-defense interceptors played a significant role in Trump’s decision to hold off on launching broader military strikes against Iran. The report follows Trump’s recent remarks that he had been prepared to order “the biggest attack since World War II” before postponing it to allow room for possible diplomatic efforts concerning the Strait of Hormuz.

Although the United States has already entered into preliminary agreements to manufacture additional Patriot air-defense systems and other critical weapons, the report noted that producing the new equipment could take as long as two years, leaving the military without a quick solution to replenish current inventories.

According to The Washington Post, U.S. forces fired more than 850 Tomahawk cruise missiles during the first month of the conflict, along with over 1,000 Patriot and THAAD interceptor missiles. The report also stated that American forces used more than 1,300 Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) missiles, leaving supplies of that weapon—also in high demand by Ukraine—virtually depleted.

The report further claimed that when Trump challenged Hegseth over the shortages, the War Secretary defended his handling of the situation and placed responsibility on Deputy Defense Secretary Stephen Feinberg, saying Feinberg had failed to adequately brief the White House on the status of the nation’s weapons stockpiles.

The White House flatly rejected the report.

“This is 100% fake news. Literally never happened. And President Trump has the utmost confidence in Secretary Hegseth,” stated White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.

The Pentagon also forcefully disputed the account. Chief spokesman Sean Parnell told The Washington Post, “Secretary Hegseth did not mislead anyone about our munitions posture, and he did not blame Deputy Secretary Feinberg. These claims about depleted stockpiles, internal disagreements, the Secretary’s position on Iran … are equally fictional.”

{Matzav.com}