Israel’s Ministry of Defense has learned that France barred official Israeli participation this month in Eurosatory, an international defense show held every two years near Paris, preventing the ministry from establishing a national pavilion.
The decision includes a ban on government representatives attending the exhibition.
The French government informed Israeli officials that while some Israeli defense companies may be permitted to attend, they will be restricted to displaying air-defense systems. Offensive weapons systems will be excluded from the exhibition.
Israel’s Defense Ministry condemned the move as discriminatory, arguing that the restrictions are being applied selectively to Israel and violate accepted norms governing international defense exhibitions.
“This is a disgraceful decision, one that reeks of political and commercial calculation,” the ministry said, adding that the move was consistent with what it described as a troubling pattern in French policy toward Israel in recent years.
The ministry accused France of acting against democratic values it publicly espouses by excluding certain Israeli technologies from an international forum. Israeli officials argued that the systems in question have demonstrated operational effectiveness and precision in combat against terrorist organizations and hostile regimes.
It further asserted that the restrictions are motivated in part by the success of Israel’s defense industry and the performance of its weapons systems, which it said have proven themselves in real-world operations and are a competitor to French systems.
France attempted to bar Israel from attending Eurosatory in 2024.
The Tribunal de commerce de Paris, or Commercial Court of Paris, reversed the ban less than three weeks later, ruling it was discriminatory.
