Northern Irish company known for its NLAW will manufacture 5,000 missiles for Ukraine

Thanks to this order, the company is expanding significantly.

Following a scandalous Oval Office meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Donald Trump, Thales (Belfast, Northern Ireland) signed a $2 billion deal with the British government on March 2 to manufacture more than 5,000 anti-tank guided missiles for Ukraine, The Economist reports .

The publication emphasized that such an agreement is excellent news for the Thales division. In particular, on March 5, the company’s managing director Nigel McQueen emphasized that such an order indicates the growth of the company.

“Over the next two years, the 850-strong workforce will increase to 1,050, and Thales will open a third factory in Northern Ireland. (In addition to the Belfast factory, the company has a test site in rural County Down),” the material noted.

The Economist adds that due to the changing geopolitics with Trump coming to power, Northern Ireland may receive more defense orders. In particular, Ulster University economist Esmond Birney believes that Harland and Wolff, which built the Titanic, should also receive more contracts, because “the presence of a huge dry dock in Belfast is gaining strategic importance.”

“Northern Ireland is now a place of peace and wants to be known. It has taken in Ukrainian refugees and all major parties support resistance to Russian invasion. But bringing peace to Ukraine and maintaining peace in the rest of Europe could mean more defense contracts for the province – however inconvenient that may be for some,” the article concluded.

The publication recalled that Thales played an important role before the start of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine. At that time, the United Kingdom sent NLAW (Next Generation Light Anti-Tank Weapon) missiles to Ukraine, which were developed by the Swedish company Saab, but manufactured by Thales employees in Belfast.

“The shoulder-fired light weapon soon became a symbol of Ukrainian defiance: it was depicted on T-shirts and flags, and also sung in the anthem,” the publication recalled.

(c)UNIAN 2025