IDF Warns of Ammunition Shortages Amidst Budget Standoff with Finance Ministry
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have issued urgent warnings about potential ammunition shortages due to a deadlock over the 2026 defense budget. Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi cautioned during a security briefing ahead of the Jewish High Holidays that the military is stretched thin across multiple fronts and faces a "empty treasury," which threatens its operational readiness. This warning came just one day before the government was expected to approve an additional 40 billion shekels to raise the defense budget to 184 billion shekels for the year, with plans for a multi-year budget of 350-400 billion shekels starting in 2027.
The Finance Ministry's Budget Department has strongly opposed increasing the defense budget amid ongoing election campaigns, effectively blocking Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's efforts to allocate tens of billions more to defense. Updated calculations indicate that the required defense budget for 2026 may rise to nearly 195 billion shekels if conflict with Iran escalates. The IDF's reserve forces are also operating above planned levels, with 50,000 reservists active instead of the budgeted 40,000, due to increased operational demands and political resistance to drafting ultra-Orthodox youth.
Senior defense officials revealed that production lines for critical munitions at major defense companies like Elbit, Israel Aerospace Industries, and Rafael are at risk of shutting down without new budget approvals. For example, Elbit is expected to exhaust its tank shell orders by next month and artillery shells by October. The halt in production threatens billions of shekels in investments made since the October 7 war to accelerate munitions manufacturing. Industry leaders warn that even short production stoppages could disrupt supply chains for scarce raw materials, potentially allowing foreign competitors to take over.
Despite these warnings, Finance Ministry officials remain unconvinced, viewing the defense sector's claims as pressure tactics. They argue that defense industries are financially robust and unlikely to close production lines. The government is relying on these companies to continue supplying the IDF on credit, despite the defense ministry's outstanding debts of approximately 15.5 billion shekels to them. Defense insiders criticize this expectation as unfair and warn it is straining the companies’ cash flows and payments to subcontractors.
The Finance Ministry responded by emphasizing that the defense budget has nearly tripled in two years and all approved funds have been fully transferred. They urged defense leaders to responsibly manage the billions allocated annually. The ongoing budget impasse leaves the IDF running "with weights on its legs," as one senior official put it, amid a complex regional security environment stretching Israel’s military resources to the limit.
