Israel plans to manufacture Iron Dome missiles in India

A new chapter is about to begin in India-Israeli defense cooperation. Israel's state defense company Rafael Advanced Defense Systems is planning to set up a factory in India to manufacture its much-discussed Iron Dome air defense system interceptor missiles.

This was reported by Indian media NDTV, citing relevant sources. The Israeli company is in talks with several Indian defense companies to jointly manufacture the 'Tamir' missile. Tamir is the main interceptor missile of the Iron Dome system, which is used to destroy enemy rockets, missiles and drones.

The sources said that this initiative could be part of a possible joint defense capability building framework between the two countries. Setting up a production line in India will allow the company to increase the global supply of its interceptor missiles, reduce production costs and create additional production capacity in case of emergencies.

Such an initiative could further boost India's 'Make in India' defence manufacturing programme and strengthen India's position as a regional defence partner.

India-Israel Defence Partnership
According to reports, India and Israel are moving towards more institutionalising their defence and security ties. The special strategic relationship announced between the two countries could include joint production of defence equipment, development of cutting-edge military technology and rapid supply chain in times of emergency.

The proposed framework, sources said, would give a more structured and permanent form to the long-standing effective defence cooperation between the two countries. Rafael currently manufactures the Iron Dome interceptor at a factory in northern Israel. The company also started producing missiles in the US last year in a joint venture with US defence company Raytheon. The factory supplies interceptors for the US Marine Corps' new air defence system and could also help Israel's manufacturing capacity if required.

In addition to Rafael, Israeli defense equipment manufacturer Elbit Systems is also producing its Hermes-900 and Hermes-450 drones in India. The Hermes-900 drone is known in Israel as the 'Star' and the Hermes-450 as the 'Zik'.