Israel Ministry of Defense Spokesperson’s Statement Regarding Israel’s Official Participation in EUROSATORY 2026

The French government has informed the Israel Ministry of Defense (IMOD) of its decision to bar Israel’s official participation in the EUROSATORY defense exhibition, scheduled to take place later this month in Paris. As a result, the IMOD will be unable to participate in the exhibition or establish a national pavilion.

The French decision encompasses: a ban on government representatives attending the exhibition; a ban on opening an Israeli national pavilion; and a restriction limiting Israeli defense industries to displaying air defense products only, with offensive systems explicitly excluded. This policy is applied selectively and discriminatorily relative to other participating nations - in direct violation of the established norms governing international defense exhibitions.

This is a disgraceful decision, one that reeks of political and commercial calculation, and regrettably, it comes as no surprise. It fits a deeply troubling pattern in French conduct in recent years - a pattern that has consistently placed France on the wrong side of history.

France, which prides itself on the values of liberty and democracy, is acting in direct contradiction to the principles it claims to uphold. It is hiding behind a pretense of political justification to exclude Israeli offensive defense systems from an international forum - systems that have proven far superior to their French counterparts, and that have demonstrated exceptional precision and effectiveness against terrorist organizations and regimes threatening not only Israel, but regional and global stability at large.