German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius is lobbying U.S. officials to permit local manufacturing of Lockheed Martin’s PAC-3 MSE interceptor missiles. This proposal aims to address a critical global shortfall of advanced air-defense weapons.
The initiative would expand on Germany's current production of older PAC-2 interceptors by MBDA and Raytheon. Lockheed Martin would utilize its existing partnership with German defense firm Rheinmetall for the new production line.
Establishing additional manufacturing in Germany would accelerate the restocking of allied inventories depleted by international conflicts. Final approval for the shift in transatlantic defense cooperation rests with U.S. industrial policy and Lockheed Martin leadership.