Iran Retains 70 Percent of Prewar Missile Arsenal, US Intelligence Finds
United States intelligence has assessed that Iran has retained approximately 70 percent of its pre-conflict missile stockpile despite sustained military exchanges, according to a new report. The finding significantly complicates Western assumptions that Iran's offensive missile capabilities had been substantially degraded through recent strikes.
The assessment suggests that Iran's missile production and dispersal strategies have been more resilient than anticipated, enabling Tehran to preserve a substantial portion of its arsenal even under active conflict conditions. This retention of capability is expected to factor heavily into ongoing US and Israeli strategic calculations regarding the Iranian threat.
The intelligence report is likely to intensify debates in Washington and allied capitals about the effectiveness of current containment strategies and the level of military pressure required to meaningfully reduce Iran's ballistic missile capacity. It may also influence the urgency and scope of ongoing nuclear diplomacy with Tehran.
For Pakistan, the regional security implications are significant. Iran's retained missile capability and its posture across the broader Middle East directly affect the stability of Pakistan's western border region and Pakistan's diplomatic navigation between its longstanding ties with Tehran and its security partnerships with Gulf states and the United States.
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