US-led defense partnership to launch missile engine production program

by Mike Stone

A US-led defense industry partnership has agreed to launch a new missile engine production program with Japan, advance a drone cooperation effort across Asia, and consider building a new ammunition production line in the Philippines, the Pentagon said on Friday.

The Indo-Pacific Industrial Resilience Partnership (IPIR) is a group of countries working together to strengthen their weapons and defense production capabilities in the Asia-Pacific region. The US created it in May 2024 to reduce supply chain risks and help allies produce and maintain military equipment closer to where they are likely to be used.

The Pentagon issued a joint statement following a virtual meeting on Wednesday, where the group welcomed two new members, Thailand and the UK, bringing the total number of members to 16 countries covering both the Indo-Pacific region and Europe.

The group announced that they had agreed to establish a new solid-fuel rocket engine production program – propulsion systems used in many guided weapons – under Japan’s leadership. This initiative is seen as a way to increase production capacity outside the US for a component of weapons.

Regarding drones, members agreed on a series of measures to develop common standards and shared supply chains for small military drones in the region, including work on batteries and small engines that power them. The group also agreed to explore the possibility of jointly building drones for a variety of military uses.

As for ammunition, members indicated that they would explore the possibility for the Philippines to host a new facility for loading, assembling, and packaging 30mm cannon shells, a type of ammunition widely used by military aircraft and ground vehicles.