US President: Iran still possesses approximately 22% of its missile arsenal.
According to AFP, US President Donald Trump said on June 5 that Iran still retains about "21-22%" of its missile capabilities. This statement comes amid signs of cracks in the ceasefire in the region following a series of recent military moves.
In an interview with NBC News, US President Donald Trump assessed Tehran's current military capabilities: "They still have combat capabilities, with some missiles and drones. In percentage terms, I would say Iran has about 21-22% of its missile stockpile remaining."
This figure represents an upward revision from the 18% that Trump cited in May. Notably, the US leader had previously repeatedly asserted that Washington had completely neutralized Iran's combat capabilities.
The White House chief's assessment came just a week after Tehran was accused of launching dozens of missiles toward its neighbors in the region, despite a fragile ceasefire agreement being in place.
Regarding the situation on the ground, the Iranian military announced on June 5th that it had launched "warning missiles" targeting two US destroyers operating in the Gulf of Oman. However, the US military quickly denied this information.
In a related development, two days earlier, Kuwaiti officials confirmed that their defense system had intercepted 30 ballistic missiles, while condemning it as part of a "serious act of aggression" by Iran.
Also on June 5th, the US military announced it had attacked radar sites on Iran's southern coast. According to information from the US Central Command (CENTCOM), US forces shot down four Iranian suicide drones as they were heading towards the Strait of Hormuz.
Shortly afterward, the US launched a retaliatory airstrike targeting Iranian coastal surveillance radar stations in the city of Goruk and Qeshm Island in the southern part of the country.
The aforementioned suicide drones posed a direct and present threat to maritime operations in the region. Disabling radar systems is a necessary defensive measure to prevent further attacks in the future.
CENTCOM's announcement confirms
Conversely, Iran's state-run IRIB confirmed that several loud explosions were recorded around 2:30 a.m. local time on June 6 in the Sirik region of southern Iran. Tehran officials have yet to issue an official comment on the cause or extent of the damage from the explosions.
