Israeli defense industry booths walled off at leading French arms exhibition

Move comes after France barred Israeli pavilion, government officials from Eurosatory, a year after black partitions surrounded Jerusalem’s exhibits at Paris Air Show

Wooden barriers have been erected around Israeli defense industry booths by event organizers at the Eurosatory exhibition in Paris, the Defense Ministry said on Monday, despite the companies complying with French restrictions requiring Israeli companies to display only defensive weapons systems.

In a statement, the ministry accused organizers of taking a “cynical” and “discriminatory” step aimed at excluding Israeli technology from the international defense expo.

Eurosatory is one of the world’s leading defense exhibitions, showcasing military systems and other security innovations from across the globe.

“The Defense Ministry will continue to promote Israeli defense exports around the world to new heights, despite French efforts to conceal Israel’s technological superiority from the global community,” Monday’s statement read.

There was no immediate comment from Eurosatory or the French government.

Earlier this month, the Defense Ministry said French authorities barred Israel from establishing a national pavilion or sending government representatives to Eurosatory, while allowing Israeli firms to exhibit only air defense systems and banning the display of offensive weapons.

At the time, the Defense Ministry panned the exhibition organizers’ decision, saying that the move was driven by “political and commercial calculation,” accusing France of applying discriminatory restrictions to Israel that are not imposed on other participating countries “in direct violation of the established norms governing international defense exhibitions.”

This year’s Eurosatory is not the first time France has restricted Israel from participating in weapons expos. French authorities also initially banned Israeli defense firms from exhibiting at the 2024 Eurosatory, before later reversing the decision.

Similarly, organizers erected black partitions around Israeli company exhibits displaying offensive weapons systems at the 2025 Paris Air Show.

Monday’s development came amid growing tensions between Jerusalem and Paris. On June 7, France was said to be working with several countries to step up pressure on Israel by advancing coordinated national sanctions targeting individuals linked to violence in the West Bank.

Two days later, Paris announced it had barred Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, four leaders of settler organizations and 21 violent settlers from entering the country, as a number of countries introduced fresh sanctions against settlers and organizations deemed to be responsible for violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.

In April, the Defense Ministry halted all defense procurement from France in response to French measures that it said “harmed Israel’s security,” including prohibiting Israeli aircraft from using French airspace during the US-led war on Iran.

The US also claimed that France refused it the use of its airspace for military purposes during the war.

Additionally, French President Emmanuel Macron criticized Israel’s defense establishment during the Iran war, openly condemning the scale of the US-Israeli campaign against the Islamic Republic, and urging a diplomatic solution to the conflict and a halt to fighting in Lebanon against the Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group.

Further straining France’s relationship with Israel is its exclusion from mediating direct talks between Israel and Lebanon in Washington.

The absence is not for lack of interest, with Macron offering in March for his country to host direct talks between Israel and Lebanon and telling President Isaac Herzog over the phone that “France is working to promote this goal.”