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The UAE is adding new THAAD launchers to its missile defense network under a USD 211.4 mn Lockheed Martin contract modification, according to a US Department of War announcement. The contract adds new Configuration 3 (C3) launchers and is a modification to a THAAD production contract originally awarded in 2019 — one that's now worth USD 1.05 bn in total after this latest change. Work runs from this month through January 2031, per the Missile Defense Agency, the US Foreign Military Sales contracting authority overseeing the agreement.
Why it matters: This is the latest in a long line of THAAD-related purchases, deliveries, and upgrades the UAE has made since becoming the system's first international customer back in 2015. This is at least the third THAAD-related US contract action for the UAE since early 2025 — two modifications to a 2021 sustainment agreement and now this one to a separate 2019 production contract — showing that Washington remains the backbone of Abu Dhabi's missile shield even as the Emirates works to diversify who it buys from.
BACKGROUND- The UAE was the first country to deploy THAAD outside the US, receiving its first interceptors in 2015 and acquiring two batteries by 2016. It has used the system operationally since January 2022, most notably during this year's Iran-Israel war.
The contract builds on a broader US-UAE weapons pipeline. The UAE picked up USD 147.6 mn in precision-guided rocket systems from Washington in May, part of a USD 8.6 bn regional package that also armed Qatar, Kuwait, and Israel in the aftermath of the Iran war.
REMEMBER- Just last month, the US had opened the door wider for the UAE to buy advanced American chips, satellites, and defense equipment, with the US Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security moving the UAE into Country Group A:5, giving the Emirati government and approved commercial entities broader access to license exceptions for sensitive US exports.
The UAE is also defense shopping beyond the West: The UAE is reportedly in early-stage talks to buy India’s BrahMos supersonic cruise missile and Akashteer automated air-defense system as it works to diversify beyond traditional Western suppliers in the wake of the Iran war.
