The figure was revealed during a tense budget hearing on Capitol Hill, where senior defence officials were grilled by both Republicans and Democrats over how quickly the costs are rising and what exactly the United States has achieved so far.………
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth appeared before the House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee alongside Joint Chiefs Chair Dan Caine, as lawmakers reviewed the Trump administration’s massive $1.5 trillion Pentagon budget request for 2027.
But instead of focusing only on future spending, the hearing quickly shifted to the growing price tag of the Iran war itself.
Pentagon finance chief Jules Hurst III told lawmakers the cost estimate had climbed sharply in just weeks.
“At the time of testimony, it was $25 billion dollars,” Hurst explained, referring to an earlier figure given in April. “But the joint staff team and the comptroller team are constantly looking at that estimate, and so now we think it’s closer to 29,” he said, pointing to rising expenses tied to repairing equipment, replacing weapons, and sustaining military operations in the region.
The jump of roughly $4 billion in such a short time added to concerns that the conflict is placing an unpredictable financial burden on US defence planning.
Lawmakers pressed for more transparency, asking when Congress would receive a full breakdown of war-related spending. Hegseth said the administration would submit additional funding requests separately but did not give a timeline for when lawmakers would see detailed figures.
“We will request whatever we think we need,” he said, offering no further specifics.
The discussion comes as the geopolitical situation remains fragile. The US-Iran ceasefire is increasingly under strain, with President Donald Trump warning earlier this week that the truce was on “life support” after rejecting what he described as an unacceptable Iranian peace proposal.
On Capitol Hill, frustration was evident across party lines, particularly over what lawmakers see as a lack of clear objectives and measurable outcomes.
