India is in final-stage talks to expand its sale of BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles to the Philippines, three sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters, in a deal that could be worth between $700 million and $800 million.

The Philippines is expected to buy about five BrahMos systems, nearly 60 missiles in total, two of the Indian sources said, as New Delhi nears completion of deliveries under an earlier $375 million deal signed in 2022.

That first order, for naval use, made the Philippines the first foreign buyer of the missile, which India developed jointly with Russia and which is among the world's fastest cruise missiles. It can be launched from land, sea or air.

Manila confirms interest

Philippine defence ministry spokesperson Arsenio Andolong told Reuters that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr had expressed his desire to acquire additional BrahMos missiles. Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro said the Philippines hoped to secure more units, speaking virtually at the Delhi Defence Dialogue.

Neither Manila nor New Delhi has officially confirmed the size or value of the potential new order, and no contract has been signed. The talks are at an advanced stage rather than concluded, and no delivery schedule has been announced.

The Philippines is modernising its armed forces and strengthening its coastal defences as tensions rise in the disputed South China Sea, where Manila and Beijing have clashed repeatedly over rival territorial claims.

A growing defence partnership

The talks come as India and the Philippines deepen defence ties. The two countries announced a Strategic Partnership in August 2025, backed by an action plan running to 2029, and India has been expanding its defence exports across South East Asia.

New Delhi announced the supply of BrahMos missiles to Indonesia in July and has signed a deal with Vietnam, while it is in talks on the system with several other countries. India's defence exports reached 384.24 billion rupees, about $4.11 billion, in the fiscal year to March, a rise of more than 62% on the previous year, according to government data cited by Reuters.

The potential new Philippine order would be more than double the value of the 2022 deal, underlining how far the defence relationship has grown in four years. It would also give Manila a larger land-based coastal defence capability across its archipelago, where the missiles are intended to deter incursions in contested waters.

BrahMos Aerospace, the India-Russia joint venture behind the weapon, has been working to increase the share of Indian-made components in the missile, which was developed from Russia's P-800 Oniks family.