France blocks Israel from heading defense expo, provoking Jerusalem’s outrage

France has barred Israel from taking part in this month’s Eurosatory defense exhibition in Paris, the Defense Ministry said on Monday, stopping Israel from setting up a national pavilion or sending government representatives to the event.

Eurosatory is one of the world’s leading defense expos, showcasing military systems and other security innovations from across the globe, News.Az reports, citing The Times of Israel.

According to the ministry, French authorities will only permit Israeli companies to display air defense systems, while prohibiting the exhibition of offensive weapon systems.

In a sharply worded statement, the ministry condemned the move as a “disgraceful decision” 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.”

France is “acting in direct contradiction to the principles it claims to uphold,” the Defense Ministry added, arguing that Israeli offensive systems have demonstrated their effectiveness against “terrorist organizations and regimes threatening not only Israel, but regional and global stability at large.”

Similarly, French authorities initially banned Israeli defense firms from exhibiting at the 2024 Eurosatory, before later reversing the decision. Organizers erected black partition walls around Israeli company exhibits displaying offensive weapons systems at the 2025 Paris Air Show.

News.Az 

By Ulviyya Salmanli