Pentagon tells US lawmakers it needs $80 billion for Iran war and other bills - WSJ

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The U.S. Department of Defense needs $80 billion to cover costs from the ​Iran war as well as other non-war-related bills, Deputy ‌Defense Secretary Stephen Feinberg told lawmakers in phone calls this week, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.

A full ​U.S. supplemental request, which will include money for the ​Pentagon as well as non-defense priorities such as farm ⁠and disaster relief, could be sent to lawmakers in the ​coming days, the newspaper added.

The Iran war has cost around $25 billion, ​a Pentagon official told Reuters in April providing the first ​official estimate of war costs.

However, the full cost of the conflict, which Trump ‌began alongside ⁠Israel on February 28, has remained an open question on Capitol Hill and an initial $200 billion request for additional funding met stiff opposition from lawmakers.

White House budget director Russell Vought told ​a hearing in ​April of the ⁠House of Representatives Budget Committee that he had no estimate for the cost of the war, as ​he defended Trump's request for a $1.5 trillion annual ​military ⁠budget.

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