(Reuters) - A joint venture between Lockheed Martin ( LMT ) and RTX's Raytheon was awarded a $1.3 billion follow-on contract by the U.S. army for its Javelin missiles, which has played a major role in Ukraine's defense against Russia's invasion, Lockheed said on Thursday.

This latest agreement is part of a larger contract awarded last year, which could reach up to $7.2 billion for an "indefinite quantity" of missiles between 2023 and 2026.

Since then, the joint venture has been ramping up Javelin production, with plans to reach an annual manufacturing capacity of around 4,000 missiles by late 2026.

The new contract includes the production of more than 4,000 Javelins specifically to replenish stocks sent to Ukraine, the Maryland-based defense contractor said.

Demand for U.S. weaponry, particularly shoulder-mounted Javelin systems, remains high in Europe due to the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia.