France restricts Israeli presence at Europe’s biggest defense show

JERUSALEM — France barred Israeli government officials from participating in Europe’s biggest defense show, prohibited the country from opening a national pavilion and restricted its arms makers from exhibiting offensive weapons, according to the show organizers and Israel’s Ministry of Defense.

Following a French government decision, Israeli exhibitors at the Eurosatory defense exhibition on June 15-19 in Paris will only be allowed to showcase equipment and products exclusively intended for air, missile and ballistic-missile defense, organizer Coges Events said in an emailed statement. The restrictions apply only to Israeli exhibitors, it said.

Israeli defense firms have faced restrictions at some major European defense exhibitions in recent years, particularly in France. The French government already excluded Israeli defense companies from the 2024 edition of Eurosatory, though that decision was overturned in court, while several Israeli booths were closed at the Paris Air Show in 2025.

“This policy is applied selectively and discriminatorily relative to other participating nations, in direct violation of the established norms governing international defense exhibitions,” the Israeli Ministry of Defense said in a statement on Monday.

The United Kingdom barred official Israeli government and military delegations from participating in the DSEI UK 2025 defense show, though companies could still exhibit independently, while Israeli firms were barred from the Dutch NEDS 2025 exhibition .

The restrictions come amid strained relations between Paris and Jerusalem over Israel’s military operations in Lebanon, with France on Monday calling an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council over escalating violence there. France in 2024 cited Israel’s military actions in Gaza to justify that year’s Eurosatory ban.

For Eurosatory, “the organizers wish to reiterate that the exhibition operates in strict compliance with the decisions and regulations established by the French authorities,” Coges Events said.

Israel’s MoD said France is hiding behind “a pretense of political justification” to exclude the country’s offensive systems from an international form, saying the decision “reeks of political and commercial calculation.”

Israeli defense companies continue to exhibit in France despite the restrictions, and some of the firms scheduled to exhibit at Eurosatory 2026 told Defense News they were unaware of any update and intended to exhibit as planned.

The latest measure represents the fourth attempt by France to restrict Israeli defense participation in two years, starting with Eurosatory 2024, though that ban was overturned by a French commercial court. That same year, Israeli companies were prohibited from displaying at the Euronaval exhibition, another measure that was overturned in court.

Israel’s Ministry of Defense suspended all defense procurement from France in April 2026, citing an “ongoing pattern of French policies” that compromises Israel’s national defense, including what Israel described as a French refusal to allow Israel-bound flights carrying U.S. weaponry to overfly French airspace during the conflict with Iran.

Eurosatory 2026 is an international defense exhibition held every two years at the Villepinte Exhibition Centre north of Paris. According to data from the latest exhibition, it attracts approximately 2,000 exhibitors from around 61 countries, alongside 355 official delegations from 92 nations.

Ruitenberg reported from Paris.

Tzally Greenberg is the Israel correspondent for Defense News. He has experience reporting on economic affairs as well as defense and cyber companies.

Rudy Ruitenberg is a Europe correspondent for Defense News. He started his career at Bloomberg News and has experience reporting on technology, commodity markets and politics.

耶路撒冷——据展会组织者和以色列国防部称，法国禁止以色列政府官员参加欧洲最大的防务展，禁止该国开设国家馆，并限制其武器制造商展出进攻性武器。

据主办方Coges Events在一份电子邮件声明中表示，根据法国政府的决定，6月15日至19日在巴黎举行的欧洲防务展（Eurosatory）上，以色列参展商仅被允许展示专门用于防空、导弹和弹道导弹防御的设备和产品。声明还指出，该限制仅适用于以色列参展商。

近年来，以色列国防企业在一些重要的欧洲防务展上面临限制，尤其是在法国。法国政府曾将以色列国防公司排除在2024年欧洲防务展（Eurosatory）之外，尽管该决定后被法院推翻；此外，在2025年巴黎航展上，以色列的几个展位也被关闭。

以色列国防部周一发表声明称：“这项政策对其他参展国具有选择性和歧视性，直接违反了国际防务展览的既定规范。”

英国禁止以色列官方政府和军事代表团参加 2025 年英国防务展 (DSEI UK 2025)，但公司仍可独立参展；而以色列公司则被禁止参加 2025 年荷兰防务展 (NEDS 2025)。

这些限制措施出台之际，正值巴黎和耶路撒冷因以色列在黎巴嫩的军事行动而关系紧张之时。周一，法国就黎巴嫩不断升级的暴力冲突呼吁联合国安理会召开紧急会议。2024年，法国曾以以色列在加沙的军事行动为由，禁止以色列参加欧洲防务展。

Coges Events表示，Eurosatory“主办方希望重申，展览的运作严格遵守法国当局制定的决定和规定”。

以色列国防部表示，法国以“政治正当性”为幌子，将该国的进攻性武器系统排除在国际规则之外，并称这一决定“充满了政治和商业算计”。

尽管受到限制，以色列国防公司仍继续在法国参展。一些计划参加 2026 年欧洲防务展的公司告诉《防务新闻》，他们并不知晓任何更新，并打算按计划参展。

最新举措是法国两年内第四次试图限制以色列参与国防活动，此前法国曾试图在2024年欧洲防务展（Eurosatory 2024）上限制以色列参战，但该禁令已被法国商业法庭推翻。同年，以色列公司也被禁止参加欧洲海军展（Euronaval），这一禁令同样被法院推翻。

以色列国防部于 2026 年 4 月暂停了从法国的所有国防采购，理由是“法国的一系列政策持续损害以色列的国防”，其中包括以色列所称的法国在与伊朗的冲突期间拒绝允许载有美国武器飞往以色列的航班飞越法国领空。

欧洲防务展（Eurosatory 2026）是每两年在巴黎北部维勒潘特展览中心举办的国际防务展览会。根据最新一届展会的数据，它吸引了来自约61个国家的约2000家参展商，以及来自92个国家的355个官方代表团。

鲁伊滕贝格从巴黎报道。

特扎利·格林伯格是《防务新闻》的以色列记者。他拥有丰富的经济事务以及国防和网络安全公司报道经验。

鲁迪·鲁伊滕贝格是《防务新闻》的欧洲记者。他的职业生涯始于彭博新闻社，拥有报道科技、大宗商品市场和政治方面的经验。