France bans Israeli companies from entering military exhibition

France has banned Israeli companies from participating in an upcoming military naval exhibition, two sources told Reuters on Wednesday. This is the latest incident to highlight increasingly strained relations between the two allies.

This decision comes as the relationship between French President Emmanuel Macron and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has become considerably strained in recent weeks, particularly after the incidents involving UNIFIL peacekeepers, repeatedly targeted by Israeli fire in South Lebanon.

Last week, the French head of state for the first time publicly expressed the idea of ​​stopping deliveries of “offensive weapons” to the Jewish state and asked Israel to cease its operations in Gaza. On Tuesday, according to a French official, he told a cabinet meeting that Mr. Netanyahu should not forget that his country was created by a UN decision.

Paris had already banned Israeli companies from participating in a military exhibition at the beginning of 2024. The Ministry of Defense, Sébastien Lecornu, then declared that the conditions were no longer met for Israeli companies to participate in this type of exhibition. event.

The Defense Ministry, Foreign Ministry, Israeli Embassy and Euronaval, which organizes the annual naval show Nov. 4-7, did not respond to requests for comment. Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot sought to downplay the comments, saying they were general remarks reminding Israel of the importance of respecting the UN charter.

Mr. Netanyahu’s office responded that the State of Israel was created by “the War of Independence with the blood of our heroic fighters, many of whom were survivors of the Holocaust, including from the Vichy regime in France”, in reference to the French government which had collaborated with Nazi Germany.

Two diplomats said the recent exchanges would not facilitate France’s mediation efforts in Lebanon. She is organizing a conference in Paris next week. Mr Netanyahu cast doubt on Paris’ intentions, accusing it of inviting South Africa and Algeria, who he said were working to deny “Israel its fundamental right to self-defense and , in fact, to reject one’s very right to exist.”