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Five NATO Members Sign Historic Deal to Build Patriot PAC-3 Missile Facility in Europe
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Five NATO members—the United States, Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden—signed an intergovernmental agreement to build a dedicated maintenance facility for PAC-3 interceptor missiles in Europe.
Polish Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz announced the deal on X on July 7, 2026.
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The parties signed it on the same day during the NATO Summit Defense Industry Forum in Ankara. Lockheed Martin, which builds the PAC-3, confirmed the commitment.
The proposed facility will handle in-region maintenance and sustainment, keeping PAC-3 missiles ready, reliable, and quickly deployable. It will serve NATO allies that operate PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement and PAC-3 Cost Reduction Initiative interceptors.
Kosiniak-Kamysz emphasized that the center will expand allied capacity and speed up both production and servicing. The goal, he noted, is not only to buy modern weapons but to produce and service them in Europe, with Poland taking part.
Jay Pitman, president of Lockheed Martin International, described the step as part of stronger transatlantic cooperation. "Industrial cooperation strengthens the transatlantic defense industrial base and contributes to economic progress and shared security," he stated.
The company added that it will contribute decades of experience in missile production, sustainment, engineering, and supply-chain management.
Global demand for the PAC-3 has climbed sharply. In January, Lockheed Martin reached a framework agreement with the US Department of War to triple PAC-3 MSE production capacity. In April, the US government awarded the company a $4.7 billion contract to accelerate that production this year.
Days earlier, on July 1, Berlin pressed Washington to allow PAC-3 interceptors to be produced on German soil, part of co-production talks pursued ahead of the Ankara summit.
The push tracked surging demand for the system, with the US Army seeking funding for 2,798 PAC-3 MSE interceptors in its Fiscal Year 2027 budget, a proposed $12.2 billion purchase.
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