New United States government guidance on the sharing of missile technology aims to help Allies and Partners develop weapons technologies by easing export control regulations.
Guidance on the application of the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) released in January 2025 calls for greater flexibility for case-by-case review and support for “certain partners with strong export control systems” to develop some Category I missiles (with the capability to deliver a payload of at least 500 kilograms to a range of at least 300 kilometers), according to a White House fact sheet. The guidance also covers unmanned aerial systems and space launch vehicle systems and affirms that the MTCR is not designed to impede national space programs or international cooperation in space programs that do not contribute to delivery of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) systems.
The updated guidance excludes transfers of complete production facilities that encompass all capabilities necessary to produce Category I systems independently. The U.S. will also work to stem the flow of advanced dual-use technology or expertise to unauthorized parties and “end-users and end-uses that pose an unacceptable risk of diversion to programs and activities of concern,” according to the fact sheet.
The changes reflect a renewed U.S. commitment to nonproliferation while advancing Allies’ capabilities, bolstering the U.S. defense industrial base, streamlining defense trade and deterring adversaries, according to the fact sheet.
“These policy changes will help the United States advance shared defense objectives with close Allies, including the implementation of AUKUS [a security partnership among Australia, the United Kingdom and the U.S.], while maintaining a strong leadership role on nonproliferation and export control policy,” the fact sheet read.
The MTCR is a voluntary, informal political understanding among 35 countries that aims to limit proliferation of missiles and missile technology by controlling the transfer of missile equipment, material and related technologies that may be used to deliver nuclear weapons or WMD. It is not a treaty and therefore is not legally binding. MTCR was formed in 1987 by the G-7 industrialized countries to reduce the threat of nuclear weapons proliferation by limiting exports of missile delivery systems. In 1992, MTCR expanded to include the proliferation of missiles produced for delivery of all types of WMD.
MTCR members agree to adhere to a common export control policy, commit to regularly meet and exchange information related to missile nonproliferation issues, and to work with non-partner nations to support nonproliferation of WMD delivery systems.
The guidance allows the U.S. to “boost our friends’ production of advanced missiles, strengthening collective deterrence and defense by increasing the global availability and interoperability of long-range and other precision guided munitions among U.S. Allies and Partners. At the same time, we will continue to impede access to advanced missile technology by bad actors,” a spokesperson for the National Security Council told Breaking Defense magazine.
“This will help commercial and military space integration with Allies, including Australia,” Malcolm Davis, a senior analyst with the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, said in a post on X. “This will also help in terms of AUKUS Pillar 2 as the space domain and space-related capabilities become much more relevant to AUKUS in the future.”