The Trump administration will convene top executives from major defense companies at the White House Friday to address the urgent need for increased weapons manufacturing, according to sources familiar with the plans.
The high-level meeting comes as military officials work to rebuild weapons inventories that have been significantly reduced following recent U.S. military actions against Iran and other operations worldwide.
Major defense corporations, including Lockheed Martin and RTX (formerly Raytheon), along with their key suppliers, have received invitations to participate in the discussions, sources revealed on condition of anonymity due to the private nature of the meeting.
The gathering highlights the administration’s intensified efforts to restore weapons supplies after Iranian operations consumed substantial munitions reserves.
Pentagon officials have encountered challenges reaching agreements with large defense companies as rapidly as desired, a U.S. official disclosed to Reuters earlier this week.
Neither Lockheed Martin nor the White House provided immediate responses to requests for comment, while RTX chose not to discuss the upcoming meeting.
The current administration has increasingly pressured defense manufacturers to focus on production capabilities rather than distributing profits to shareholders. In January, Trump issued an executive order designed to identify contractors who may be underperforming on government contracts while prioritizing shareholder distributions.
Following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine and Israel’s military campaigns in Gaza, the United States has depleted weapons stockpiles worth billions of dollars, including artillery equipment, ammunition supplies, and anti-tank missile systems.
Preparations for Friday’s meeting included a previously undisclosed conference call Wednesday evening between Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg and selected defense contractors, according to sources who requested anonymity. The Pentagon has not yet responded to requests for comment regarding this development.
The discussions center around agreements with major contractors such as Lockheed Martin, according to two government sources and one industry executive. The company secured a seven-year deal with the Pentagon in January to boost annual PAC-3 missile interceptor production capacity from approximately 600 units to 2,000 units yearly. Additionally, Lockheed has announced plans to increase Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile interceptor production four-fold, from 96 to 400 units annually.
Air defense system demand, particularly for PAC-3 interceptors, has increased dramatically among the U.S. and allied nations due to rising geopolitical tensions and ongoing conflicts involving Iran.
The White House gathering may align with the announcement of a supplemental budget request totaling approximately $50 billion, which Reuters initially reported Tuesday. These additional funds would finance the replacement of weapons utilized in recent conflicts, including Middle Eastern operations. The preliminary figure remains subject to change based on operational duration.
This supplemental funding request would supplement an extra $150 billion in defense spending already incorporated into Republicans’ comprehensive legislative package, which they have described as “one big beautiful bill.”
