Israel to cut French defence imports to zero amid dispute

Israel will reduce its defence imports from France to zero, a defence ministry spokeswoman said, according to The New Arab via AFP on 1 April.

“The Director General of the Ministry of Defence, Amir Baram, has decided to reduce defence procurement from France to zero, diverting those funds to ‘Blue and White’, i.e. Israeli procurement or to allied nations,” she said.

Israeli officials said the move was in response to several French government measures, including recognising a Palestinian state, excluding Israel from defence exhibitions in France and banning Israeli aircraft carrying munitions for the war against Iran from transiting French airspace.

France refused to allow Israel to use its airspace to transport US weapons for the war against Iran, Reuters reported on 31 March. The restriction applied to aircraft carrying military equipment intended for Israeli operations during the conflict.

The French presidency said the decision was consistent with its policy since the start of the conflict, while US President Donald Trump accused Paris of being “very unhelpful”.

Israel’s defence ministry accused France of undermining defence cooperation and harming strategic ties between the two countries. It said the measures were viewed “with great severity” and added that the munitions were intended solely for use against Iran.

It added that the transfers were linked to wider security efforts tied to the conflict and critical to European security.

According to a recent French parliamentary report, France does not export complete weapons systems to Israel but supplies components used in defence systems or re-exported to third countries.

Israeli procurement from French defence companies totalled around $260 million between 2015 and 2024, the report said, a small share of France’s global arms exports, which reached more than $25 billion in 2024.

The move comes as the conflict involving Iran, which began on 28th February, continues to affect military cooperation and logistics across the region.

AFP via The New Arab, Reuters, Maghrebi.org