India Plans To Buy US-Made Javelin Anti-Tank Missiles; Co-Production Possibility Emerges

New Delhi, August 28, 2026: India plans to procure the battle-tested Javelin single-man-portable, fire-and-forget, medium-range anti-tank weapon system from the US, US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor said.

The announcement follows the US State Department's approval in November 2025 of a potential sale of Javelin weapon systems to India, marking another step in expanding defence cooperation between New Delhi and Washington.

"BIG news! India plans to buy the battle-tested Javelin anti-tank system. Just as US Secretary of State Pete Hegseth highlighted at the May 2026 Shangri-La Dialogue, this is a great step forward in the US-India defence relationship and opens the door to co-production possibilities. The engagement between our two nations is at record-high levels," Gor said in a post on X.

The missile system is already used by the US Army and Marine Corps as well as several international customers.

"The agreement creates new opportunities for the defence industries of both countries to work together. We see tremendous potential for future cooperation that strengthens the defence industrial bases of both countries," Gor added.

The number of Javelin anti-tank guided missile systems India plans to procure and the overall cost of the purchase are not immediately known. New Delhi has also not immediately commented on the agreement.

How The Javelin System Works

The Javelin is a portable anti-tank missile system jointly developed by Lockheed Martin and RTX for use against armoured targets and is widely deployed by the US and allied forces.

The shoulder-fired system uses an automatic guidance mechanism that enables the missile to track its target after launch, allowing the operator to take cover and avoid counterfire.

The missile is designed to strike the upper part of a tank, one of its least armoured areas. It follows an inverted U-shaped trajectory after launch to precisely hit its target.

The gunner selects a target using a cursor, after which the command launch unit sends a lock-on-before-launch signal to the missile. Its light weight enables troops to reposition after firing or reload to engage another threat.

The system's soft-launch design also allows it to be fired safely from enclosed structures, including buildings and bunkers.

The Javelin was developed and produced for the US Army and Marine Corps by the Javelin Joint Venture, involving Lockheed Martin in Orlando, Florida, and Raytheon in Tucson, Arizona.

US Approved Potential $93 Million Sale

In November 2025, the US State Department approved a potential $93 million sale to India covering up to 100 Javelin systems and 216 Excalibur guided artillery projectiles.

India is the world's fifth-largest military spender and second-largest arms importer after Ukraine, according to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. India already uses Excalibur ammunition with its M777 howitzers.

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India-US Defence Cooperation Expands

The development comes as India expands its procurement of US defence equipment.

India and the US signed a framework for a major defence partnership in October 2025 aimed at strengthening interoperability across land, sea, air, space and cyberspace.

India has also acquired several US-made defence platforms, including Apache and Chinook helicopters, C-17 and C-130J transport aircraft, P-8I maritime patrol aircraft and M777 howitzers.

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