Defense Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine speak at a news conference on Thursday, March 19, 2026, at the Pentagon in Arlington, Va. (Benjamin D. Applebaum/Defense Department)
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Thursday that the Pentagon has asked the White House for additional funds for the war in Iran but declined to set a figure, which has been reported at $200 billion.
“It takes money to kill bad guys,” Hegseth said during a media briefing at the Pentagon. “So we’re going back to Congress and our folks there to ensure that we’re properly funded for what’s been done, for what we may have to do in the future.”
The Washington Post first reported the request, citing an unnamed senior Trump administration official.
Hegseth did not directly confirm the $200 billion figure when asked about it by a reporter, saying “the number could move.”
President Donald Trump defended the multibillion dollar request later Thursday as he spoke to reporters at the White House, saying the money would fund more than the current operations in Iran, according to the Wall Street Journal.
“We’re asking for a lot of reasons, beyond even what we’re talking about in Iran,” Trump said when asked about the Pentagon’s request.
Hegseth and Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, briefed the media Thursday morning. In addition to the reported funding request, they spoke about the volume of attacks launched at Iran and Wednesday’s dignified transfer of six U.S. airmen who died last week in western Iraq.
Hegseth opened the briefing by saying the families of the six airmen killed in the crash of their Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker had a simple message for him.
“We grieved with their families, and we listened. What I heard through tears, through hugs, through strength and through unbreakable resolve was the same from family after family. They said, ‘Finish this, honor their sacrifice. Do not waver. Do not stop until the job is done,’” Hegseth said.
Hegseth and Caine were among top U.S. officials who attended the dignified transfer at Dover Air Force Base, in Delaware, as the airmen were returned to their families.
Three of the airmen were part of the 99th Air Refueling Squadron: Maj. John A. Klinner, 33, of Auburn, Ala.; Capt. Ariana G. Savino, 31, of Covington, Wash.; and Tech. Sgt. Ashley B. Pruitt, 34, of Bardstown, Ky. The squadron is stationed in Birmingham, Ala., but functions administratively under the 6th Air Refueling Wing at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida.
Also killed were Capt. Seth R. Koval, 38, of Mooresville, Ind.; Capt. Curtis J. Angst, 30, of Wilmington, Ohio; and Tech. Sgt. Tyler H. Simmons, 28, of Columbus, Ohio, who were assigned to the 121st Air Refueling Wing at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base in Ohio.
The refueling aircraft went down in friendly airspace on March 12. The circumstances of the crash remain under investigation, Caine said Thursday, although U.S. Central Command has said it was not caused by hostile or friendly fire. Another plane involved landed safely.
Hegseth said his 13-year-old son popped into his office last night as he was editing his remarks to ask about the war and the families his dad met at Dover.
“I looked at him and I said, ‘They died for you, son, so that your generation doesn’t have to deal with a nuclear Iran,’” he said. “It’s the truth and they did. So to the families who said, ‘finish this,’ we will.”
Thirteen service members have been killed and nearly 200 have been wounded during Operation Epic Fury, U.S. Central Command has confirmed. The vast majority of the wounded had minor injuries, and more than 180 of them have returned to duty, CENTCOM said.
Hegseth said the U.S. has struck more than 7,000 targets and Thursday “is the largest strike package yet,” a line the Pentagon has repeated often during the campaign.
“The last job anyone in the world wants right now, senior leader for the [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps],” the secretary said. “Temp jobs, all of them.”
U.S. forces on Tuesday employed multiple 5,000-pound bunker buster bombs on Iranian missile sites along Iran’s coastline near the Strait of Hormuz, U.S. Central Command posted on X at the time.
Caine said Thursday the U.S. has destroyed 120 Iranian Naval vessels and 44 mine layers.
“We’re flying further to the east now and penetrating deeper into Iranian airspace to hunt and kill one way attack garrisons, destroying Iran’s ability to project power outside of its borders,” the chairman added.
Air Force A-10 Warthogs are being used in the southern flank against vessels along the Strait of Hormuz, Caine said. Also in the southern flank are AH-64 Apache helicopters.
The chairman also acknowledged the U.S. remains “aggressive” against Iran’s ballistic missiles because “they still retain some capability.”
Hegseth was quick to say the U.S. remains “on plan” to achieve President Donald Trump’s objectives. Trump, along with other top officials, have said objectives are to destroy Iran’s missile capabilities, destroy Iran’s Navy and ensure Iran never obtains a nuclear weapon.
The Pentagon did not take questions about whether the Trump administration is considering deploying thousands of U.S. troops to reinforce its operation in the Middle East, as Reuters has reported.
More than 2,000 Marines and at least one warship are headed from the Pacific to the Middle East, multiple news outlets reported Friday.
One U.S. official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told The Associated Press that roughly 2,500 Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit and the amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli have been ordered to deploy.
The Tripoli would join the world’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, as well as the USS Abraham Lincoln as part of an armada of American warships, stealth fighters and air defense systems in the region. About 50,000 troops have been deployed.
The Ford, along with nearly 4,500 personnel, is operating in the Red Sea in support of Operation Epic Fury.
USNI News reported on Tuesday that the Ford would soon leave the Red Sea to undergo repairs at U.S. Naval Support Activity Souda Bay on the Greek island of Crete, citing an unnamed senior U.S. official.
Military officials contacted by Stars and Stripes would not say whether Ford would depart the Middle East, citing operational security.
