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Automatically translated version. May contain inaccuracies compared to the original.
U.S. Vice President J. D. Vance in the spring and summer acted unusually, directly calling American military commanders in the Middle East, Europe, and Asia to get their frank assessment of the war with Iran, The New York Times reports, citing current and former officials.
Vance, who from the outset opposed the war and whom President Trump tasked with helping end the conflict, wanted to hear the commanders’ individual judgments, stated in their own words, before they were consolidated into a single Pentagon position.
The paper shared that the conversations examined in detail a whole range of issues related to the war, including its objectives, tactics, casualty assessments, possible Iranian actions in the Strait of Hormuz, the degree of their adaptability, and how well their government could endure pressure.
Vance also asked for a detailed report on what remained in the commanders’ stockpiles, and how transferring weapons to the Middle East would affect their ability to deter China, Russia, and North Korea.
Concerns of the U.S. military
The paper reported that on the last point the commanders spoke candidly. They were most worried about depleted stocks of Patriot interceptors — the backbone of their air defense system.
Data are cited showing that by the end of spring, in one theater of operations fewer than 100 remained. The war has also drained stocks of the Army’s tactical missile systems, with ranges of 190 miles, as well as stocks of precision-strike missiles intended to replace them.
"The stocks of such critically important munitions as these," they told the vice president, "were the lowest in history," the article says.
According to the publication’s sources, after some conversations Vance developed deep concerns about the overall strategy and prospects for success.
The paper noted that these assessments clearly showed the extraordinary sacrifices the Iranian government is willing to make in a fight for survival, as well as the limits of U.S. defensive weapons stockpiles needed to repel Iranian retaliatory strikes or to counter threats in other regions.
Trump’s position
Vance took these findings into account in his private talks with Trump and their closest circle. Meanwhile, during briefings the president was getting increasing information from General Dan Keane, chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, about the strain on U.S. stocks and the resilience of Iran’s armed forces, which Trump initially found hard to believe.
The paper explains that officials’ testimony shows how Vance tried to surface more details and nuances about the war. They also help clarify the hotly debated questions about what information Trump is receiving about the war and from whom.
There was a deep gulf between the sober internal assessments Vance was getting and what senior administration officials, including the president, were publicly saying.
In particular, Trump continued to falsely claim that the United States had already won the war, that Iran’s armed forces were routed, and that there were no problems with supplying American weapons.
In private conversations the president fumed angrily about media reports that detailed stockpile reductions, calling journalists "traitors" for covering the issue.
According to officials with direct knowledge, Vance’s calls to commanders were made with the knowledge of the president; Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth; General Keane; Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is also serving as national security advisor; and Susie Wiles, White House chief of staff.
Vance’s reputation
The paper noted that Vance has built a reputation within the Trump administration as someone who dives deeply into operational details — a habit some officials approve of and others view as an excessive fixation on minutiae.
Whereas Trump operates in a way that even his aides cannot guess how he makes decisions, Vance obsessively tracks daily minutiae, including military operations, the internal dynamics of the Iranian political system, and the sources of intelligence assessments.
To meet the vice president’s demands for detailed information, Hegseth ordered the Office of Naval Intelligence to prepare daily reports for Vance on the Strait of Hormuz, which, Pentagon officials said, are now also being received by other senior Trump aides.
The paper explained that those reports indicate which ships are transiting the strait, under what flags they sail, and what cargo they carry.
However, the paper emphasizes, such access is an exception. For most senior officials, information about the war remains hard to access.
U.S. war against Iran: latest news
Earlier UNIAN reported that as a result of an Iranian strike on the U.S. military base Muwaffaq Salti in Jordan, nine U.S. Air Force aircraft were damaged. A CBS News interlocutor said eight F-15 fighters received light damage. After necessary checks they were returned to service. Also one A-10 Thunderbolt, known as the Warthog, suffered significantly more serious damage. According to the publication’s sources, a missile hit the plane and tore off its wing.
We also wrote that the president’s sanctions policy representative Vladyslav Vlasyuk said that three of the five Iranian tankers struck by the U.S. on 8 September have direct links to the Russian shadow fleet — Kaviz, Charminar, and Riesco. They were used to transport Russian oil under sanctions. In particular, Kaviz called at Ust-Luga and Novorossiysk, carrying Russian oil. The second struck vessel, Charminar, called at Ust-Luga, Primorsk, Vysotsk, and Saint Petersburg. Vlasyuk emphasized that the third ship, Riesco, carried both Russian and Iranian oil, including via transshipments with other sanctioned tankers.
Document: PDF proof of the original version of the news item "Венс отримував тверезі оцінки військових щодо війни США з Іраном, - NYT". It records the publication content at the moment of the first scan, the preservation date and the source: UNIAN.
