France has again decided to bar Israel’s official participation in the Eurosatory international defense exhibition, scheduled to take place in Paris from June 15 to 18.
Under the decision, Israeli government representatives and officials from the Israel Ministry of Defense will not be allowed to attend the exhibition, and Israel will not be permitted to set up a national pavilion.
Private Israeli defense companies will be allowed to participate, but only to display air defense and missile defense systems. They will not be permitted to present offensive weapons systems.
The official exhibition website lists the countries invited to the event, including “Palestine.”
An Israeli official described the move as “an escalation and a worsening of French policy,” adding that Israel would have to decide how to respond, though the official said it was doubtful Israel would boycott the exhibition. The notice has already been passed to Israel’s Foreign Ministry and ambassador, while the formal letter is expected to be sent soon.
The practical effect of the decision is a significant restriction on Israel’s ability to showcase its defense technologies at one of the world’s most important arms exhibitions. Israeli officials said Israel is considered a direct competitor of France in several defense technology fields.
Last week, French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu addressed defense ties between the two countries, saying: “I will repeat this as many times as necessary: There are no French arms sales to Israel. There are none. But let’s tell the truth and stop calling it an ‘embargo.’ Israel is the one imposing an embargo on us. Israel does not buy French weapons because it chooses not to buy French weapons, because it does not need French weapons.”
Maj. Gen. Amir Baram, director general of the Israel Ministry of Defense, has instructed the ministry to reduce purchases from France to zero. Defense Ministry officials said France is one of Israel’s direct competitors in defense exports and argued that economic interests were a major factor in the decision to restrict Israeli participation.
The Defense Ministry sharply criticized the French move, calling it “a disgraceful decision” that “reeks of political and commercial calculation.”
“Regrettably, it comes as no surprise,” the ministry said. “It fits a deeply troubling pattern in French conduct in recent years, a pattern that has consistently placed France on the wrong side of history.”
The ministry said the restriction on Israeli defense companies, allowing them to display only air defense products while barring offensive systems, created unequal treatment compared with defense industries from other countries and was “in direct violation of the established norms governing international defense exhibitions.”
“France, which prides itself on the values of liberty and democracy, is acting in direct contradiction to the principles it claims to uphold,” the ministry said, accusing Paris of using “a pretense of political justification” to exclude Israeli offensive defense systems from an international forum.
The ministry said Israeli technologies have “demonstrated exceptional precision and effectiveness” against terrorist organizations and hostile regimes threatening Israel, the region and global stability.
First published: 17:45, 06.01.26