India has signed a Letter of Offer and Acceptance (LOA) with the US to acquire the Javelin anti-tank guided missile system.
The US had earlier approved a potential $45.7-million package.
Javelins are used by countries including the UK, Australia, France, Germany and Ukraine.
India Signs Javelin Anti-Tank Missile Deal With US
The agreement makes India an official customer of the Javelin system and could also pave the way for greater cooperation between Indian and US defence companies
Summary
India has formally signed an agreement with the United States to acquire the Javelin anti-tank guided missile system, marking a fresh step in defence cooperation between the two countries.
The Indian Army signed a Letter of Offer and Acceptance (LOA) under the US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) programme, the US Embassy in India said on Friday. The agreement makes India an official customer of the Javelin system and could also pave the way for greater cooperation between Indian and US defence companies.
“This agreement reflects a defence partnership that is growing deeper, more capable, and more consequential,” US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor said.
What Is The Javelin And How Much Will India Pay?
The Javelin is a man-portable, medium-range, fire-and-forget anti-tank missile designed to destroy armoured vehicles and attack fortified positions. It is manufactured by the Javelin Joint Venture between RTX's Raytheon and Lockheed Martin.
The US State Department had approved a possible $45.7-million (around ₹380 crore) FMS package for India in November 2025. The package includes 100 FGM-148 Javelin missiles, one fly-to-buy missile and 25 command launch units, along with training equipment, spare parts, technical assistance and logistics support. Though the exact cost of the current deal is not known at this point.
The weapon's fire-and-forget capability allows an operator to launch the missile and move away rather than continuously guide it to the target.
From Ukraine To India: Why The Javelin Matters
The Javelin has become one of the world's best-known anti-armour weapons, particularly because of its use by Ukrainian forces against Russian armoured vehicles.
The system has been procured by 25 countries, according to Lockheed Martin, with more than 55,000 missiles and 12,000 reusable command launch units produced. Its international users include the UK, Australia, France, Germany, Poland, Norway, Estonia, Lithuania, Taiwan, Indonesia, Thailand, Ukraine, Qatar and the UAE, among others.
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For India, however, the deal is significant not just because of the missile itself.
The US and India have discussed the Javelin for more than a decade, including the possibility of co-production in India. In 2020, the Javelin Joint Venture signed an MoU with state-owned Bharat Dynamics Limited to explore co-production. That cooperation was renewed in 2025.
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