US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth sharply criticized Arizona Democratic Senator Mark Kelly for publicly claiming that the military campaign against Iran had significantly depleted American arsenals. Hegseth threatened legal action against the Pentagon, accusing the lawmaker of disclosing details of a classified briefing.

"Captain Mark Kelly strikes again. Now he's on TV (falsely and stupidly) babbling about a secret Pentagon briefing he received.""Hegseth wrote on social media, commenting on Kelly's interview with CBS News.

The Pentagon chief said the department's legal service would look into the matter for possible oath violations.

In an interview, Kelly, a retired U.S. Navy captain and member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, confirmed that the Pentagon had informed him of significant consumption of key munitions.

"We need to do a lot to restore these reserves," “He said, emphasizing that it would take years.

He included in this list Tomahawk cruise missiles, ATACMS operational-tactical missiles, SM-3 anti-missiles, and “dozens” of missiles for the THAAD and Patriot air defense and missile defense systems.

According to the senator, the US has expended "a lot of ammunition," making the country "less safe." Kelly expressed concern about the US's ability to effectively counter a potential conflict with China or other threats in various regions of the world.

Hegseth, commenting on these statements earlier, stated that "stockpiles are high" and demanded that suppliers increase production rates. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump issued a more optimistic statement, calling ammunition stockpiles "very good." He explained that while the conflict with Iran had "depleted" the arsenal, "it wasn't depleted enough that we couldn't replenish them later."