The Defense Ministry on Monday denounced the erection of wooden panels around Israeli defense industry stands by organizers of the Eurosatory trade show in Paris, although the companies complied with French restrictions that prohibit them from displaying weapons systems offensive.
In a statement, the ministry accused the organizers of having taken a “cynical” and “discriminatory” measure aimed at excluding Israeli technology from this international defense fair.
Eurosatory is one of the world’s leading defense exhibitions, showcasing military systems and other security innovations from around the world.
“The Defense Ministry will continue to promote Israeli defense exports around the world to reach new heights, despite French efforts to conceal Israel’s technological superiority from the international community,” the statement said. press release which was published on Monday.
Eurosatory and the French government have not yet reacted.
Earlier this month, the Defense Ministry said French authorities had banned Israel from setting up a national flag or sending government representatives to Eurosatory, while allowing Israeli companies to only present air defense systems and prohibiting the presentation of offensive weapons.
At the time, the Defense Ministry strongly criticized the decision, saying it was motivated by “political and commercial calculations” and accusing France of imposing discriminatory restrictions on Israel that are not applied to other participating countries, “in “direct violation of established standards that govern international defense exhibitions.”
This is not the first time that France has restricted Israeli participation in arms fairs, the 2026 edition of Eurosatory not being the first. The French authorities had initially banned Israeli defense companies from exhibiting at the 2024 edition of Eurosatory, before reversing this decision.
Likewise, during the 2025 Paris Air Show, organizers erected black partitions around the stands of Israeli companies presenting offensive weapons systems.
Monday’s development comes amid growing tensions between Jerusalem and Paris. On June 7, France joined several countries to intensify pressure on Israel by imposing coordinated national sanctions against individuals and entities linked to violence in the West Bank.
Two days later, Paris announced that it had banned the entry into its territory of Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, four leaders of pro-settlement movement organizations and 21 violent settler residents, while several countries introduced new sanctions against settler residents and against groups considered responsible for violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
In April, the Defense Ministry suspended all its arms purchases from France in response to French measures which, according to it, “undermined the security of Israel”, including the ban on Israeli planes from using space. French air force during the war led by the United States against the Iranian regime.
The United States also claimed that France had denied them the use of its airspace for military purposes during the war.
Additionally, French President Emmanuel Macron criticized theestablishment of the Israeli Defense during the war against Tehran. He openly condemned the scale of the US-Israeli campaign against the Islamic Republic and called for a diplomatic solution to the conflict, as well as an end to fighting in Lebanon against the Tehran-backed Shiite terrorist group Hezbollah.
The exclusion of France from mediating direct talks between Israel and Lebanon in Washington has further strained relations between France and Israel.
In mid-April, the Israeli ambassador to the United States criticized France’s role in Lebanon, believing that Paris had no place in the negotiations between Israel and Lebanon.
At the end of direct talks between Israel and Lebanon in Washington, Yechiel Leiter declared to the press: “It is certain that we do not want to see the French interfere in the negotiations. HAS”
“We would like to keep the French as far away as possible from practically everything, but especially when it comes to peace negotiations,” the Israeli representative continued, in very undiplomatic terms.
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“They are not necessary. They do not have a positive influence, especially not in Lebanon. HAS”
