Overview
- France’s Defence Council notified Israel on Monday that Israeli government representatives will be barred from attending Eurosatory, an Israeli national pavilion will not be permitted, and Israeli firms may show only air‑ and missile‑defence systems.
- Event organiser COGES Events and France’s defence ministry confirmed the limit to anti‑ballistic and air‑defence displays and said offensive weapons must be excluded from the exhibition floor.
- Israel’s Ministry of Defense condemned the decision as politically motivated and discriminatory, calling it “a disgraceful decision” and accusing France of commercial calculation.
- Major Israeli firms including Elbit and Rafael intend to attend under the new constraints, but smaller companies that rely on a ministry‑led national pavilion face steep logistical and cost barriers to exhibiting.
- The measure deepens an ongoing bilateral rupture that included France’s recognition of a Palestinian state in September 2025 and Israel’s halt to defence procurement from France in March 2026, and continues a pattern of prior French restrictions at defence shows.