CNN said Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine acknowledged that Shahed drones are a far more serious problem than previously expected.
“They are known to fly low and slow — a feature that makes them more able to evade air defenses than ballistic missiles,” the report said.
Another person familiar with the briefing said officials tried to downplay concerns and noted that Gulf partners are stockpiling interceptor missiles.
Sources told CNN that Trump administration officials brushed
off lawmakers’ questions about plans to prevent Iran from becoming a failed
state, saying regime change was a secondary goal. The officials did not say who
they expect would succeed Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei after he was killed in an
Israeli air strike days ago, according to CNN.