With massive weapons aid to Ukraine, can US rebuild its stocks?

The U.S. has sent more than $45 billion in military aid to Ukraine, significantly drawing down its own stockpiles of key munitions and weapons systems. Among the items provided: more than 10,000 Javelin missiles, tens of thousands of 122 mm rockets, and more than 1.5 million 155 mm artillery rounds.

Replenishing that materiel won’t be easy. The U.S. defense industrial base has evolved into a system based on producing just enough materiel to fulfill regular Pentagon orders. Expanding capacity could require big boosts in machinery, labor, and other manufacturing inputs.

“A lesson learned, I think, for our country from the Ukraine conflict is that our industrial base is not as robust