The United States can strengthen domestic defense production by expanding supply chains with trusted allies, according to MITRE.
In a Dec. 19 report titled Strengthening the Defense Industrial Base through Supply Chain Diversification and Partnerships, the not-for-profit organization identified three key actions for allied cooperation: exporting U.S. defense systems, sourcing components from allied suppliers, and jointly developing or producing advanced technologies.
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How Can Partnerships Augment Domestic Capabilities?
MITRE explained that different countries already hold absolute or comparative advantages in specific sectors, such as advanced radar technologies, naval shipbuilding and cybersecurity.
A recent partnership between the United States and Finland illustrates how allied supply chains can complement domestic industry. Under a memorandum of understanding, the two countries will jointly construct up to four Arctic security cutters, or ASC, in Finnish shipyards before transferring shipbuilding expertise to support follow-on construction in the United States. The phased approach enables the U.S. Coast Guard to address urgent Arctic capability gaps while laying the groundwork for onshore ASC production and strengthening the domestic shipbuilding industrial base, the White House said.
Accessing complementary capabilities through structured partnerships can expand available capacity, augmenting the domestic defense ecosystem, and facilitating technology and specialization exchange between allied nations.
Additionally, the report revealed that a distributed supply base is more challenging to target, bolstering collective physical and cybersecurity, and it creates redundancy for critical components and materials.
How to Address Risks Associated With Defense Diversification
The report warned that broader international supply networks introduce coordination challenges, policy misalignment and increased exposure to external disruptions.
MITRE emphasized the need for aligned policies, especially export controls. The recommendation is aligned with President Donald Trump’s April 2025 executive order to reform the foreign defense sales system to improve transparency and accountability and revitalize the defense industrial base.
The U.S. must also establish strong intellectual property protections and implement investment screenings to prevent risks.
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