Breaking Defense
• Valerie Insinna
Northrop Grumman has signed two multi-year framework agreements worth more than $3 billion with the Pentagon and Lockheed Martin to supply components for Patriot and THAAD interceptors. The agreements support a broader U.S. effort to replenish missile inventories strained by conflicts in Iran and Ukraine.
Missile Systems & Strategic Weapons
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Rheinmetall’s proposed GMF 140 frigate is designed around US-sourced radar options, the AEGIS Combat System, hypersonic weapons and ballistic missiles. The vessel would also carry 64 Strike-Length Vertical Launch System cells, positioning it for a future North American naval procurement competition.
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Northrop Grumman has signed two multi-year framework agreements worth more than $3 billion with the Pentagon and Lockheed Martin to supply components for Patriot and THAAD interceptors. The agreements support a broader U.S. effort to replenish missile inventories strained by conflicts in Iran and Ukraine.
Ukraine may be able to use its F-16 fleet to target Russian ballistic-missile launchers within weeks, but the effort depends on Washington authorizing or enabling a specific capability. The potential mission would expand the aircraft’s role beyond conventional air operations into counter-launcher missions.
Artificial intelligence is reshaping military operations across every domain, from missile and drone warfare to satellites, naval forces, airpower and cyber operations. The accelerating integration of AI into weapons and command systems raises consequential questions about escalation, control and the future role of humans in decisions involving weapons of mass destruction.
Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force has conducted its first firing of an RTX BGM-109 Tomahawk land-attack cruise missile. The U.S.-supported test, launched from the destroyer JS Chokai, advances Tokyo’s long-range strike capability and marks a significant operational milestone for its maritime forces.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky asked U.S. President Donald Trump to enable Starlink support for operations targeting ballistic-missile launchers inside Russia. The request would expand the role of commercial satellite connectivity in Ukraine’s military targeting and strike activities.
China’s Type 052D destroyer reportedly carried and launched the YJ-20 hypersonic missile, signaling an expanded naval strike capability in the Pacific. Separately, Japan’s F-2 fighter has been seen with a new large stealth cruise missile under its wings, pointing to longer standoff reach for air-launched strikes.
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