US and allies move to build missiles and drones closer to Asia's flashpoints

 WASHINGTON, March 20 (Reuters) - A U.S.-led defense manufacturing partnership agreed to launch a new missile motor production program with Japan, push forward ​a drone cooperation effort across Asia and explore building a ‌new ammunition production line in the Philippines, the Pentagon said on Friday.

The Partnership for Indo-Pacific Industrial Resilience, known as PIPIR, is a group of nations working ​together to build up their weapons and defense manufacturing capacity ​in the Asia-Pacific region. The United States set it ⁠up in May 2024 to reduce supply chain risks and help ​allies produce and maintain military equipment closer to where it might be ​needed.

 

The Pentagon published a joint statement following a virtual meeting on Wednesday, where the group welcomed two new members — Thailand and the United Kingdom — bringing its ​total membership to 16 countries spanning both the Indo-Pacific and Europe.

 

The ​group said it had agreed to set up a new program to produce solid rocket ‌motors — ⁠the propulsion systems used in many guided weapons — with Japan taking the lead. The move is seen as a way to boost production capacity outside the United States for a key weapons component.

 

On drones, ​members agreed on ​a series of ⁠steps to develop common standards and shared supply chains for small military drones across the region, including ​work on batteries and small motors that power them. ​The group ⁠also agreed to explore building drones together across a range of military uses.

 

On ammunition, members said they would look into the Philippines hosting ⁠a new ​facility to load, assemble, and package ​30mm cannon rounds — a type of ammunition widely used by military aircraft and ground vehicles.