ANKARA, July 7 (Reuters) - The U.S. is in talks with

Germany and other European nations about establishing

co-production of Raytheon's AIM-120 AMRAAM missiles and a

maintenance facility for Lockheed's PAC-3 Patriot missiles in

Europe, a source told Reuters.

If implemented, both projects could free up capacity at

Raytheon and Lockheed Martin ( LMT ) factories in the

United States and enable the U.S. defence giants to ramp up

production at home.

The countries will sign a statement of intent at a NATO

Industry Forum on the sidelines of the military alliance's

Ankara summit later on Tuesday, said the source, who spoke on

condition of anonymity.

Both PAC-3 missiles for Patriot air defence units and

AIM-120C-8 missiles, launched by NASAMS air defence systems as

well as by F-16 fighter jets, are in high demand in Ukraine

where Kyiv has been fighting off Russian attacks since Moscow's

full-scale invasion in 2022.

U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly criticised

European allies for relying on the U.S. for their security,

while pressing them to boost defence spending and buy more U.S.

equipment. He has also threatened at times to pull Washington

out of NATO.

In mid-June, Trump invoked the Defense Production Act to

​address constraints in weapons supply and development ‌for

munitions production and supply chains.

The move followed growing ​concern in Washington about the

capacity of ​U.S. weapons manufacturers to meet demand, as both

the war on Iran and the war in Ukraine have depleted U.S. arms

stocks.

Trump has also encouraged co-production of U.S. weapons with

Europe.