Two Major Importers of Israel's Weapons Revealed

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Amid the growing calls to curb arms sales to Israel over the ongoing conflict with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, recent data revealed that nearly all of Israel's weapons were imported from companies in the two countries.

The United States, the largest arms supplier to Israel

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), which studies armed conflicts, reports that US companies account for 69% of Israel's weaponry sales, followed by Germany (30%) and Italy (0.9%).

“At the end of 2023, the US rapidly delivered thousands of guided bombs and missiles to Israel, but the total volume of Israeli arms imports from the USA in 2023 was almost the same as in 2022. By the end of 2023, pending deliveries of major arms to Israel included 61 combat aircraft from the USA and 4 submarines from Germany,” the SIPRI report read.

Guided bombs are kits that transform ordinary bombs into precise weapons, through the use of American-made Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) systems. 

According to the Washington Post on March 6, the United States quietly approved and delivered over 100 separate foreign military sales to Israel since the attack on Gaza commenced on October 7, 2023. U.S. officials revealed this in a recent classified briefing with members of Congress.

Jeremy Konyndyk, a former senior official in the Joe Biden administration, assessed that this strongly suggested that the Israeli campaign would not be sustainable without U.S. support.

The current president of Refugees International thus demanded the U.S. use arms sales to pressure Israel to cease-fire in Gaza.

Germany, the second-largest arms supplier to Israel

According to the report, Germany and Israel are mutually dependent, with Berlin purchasing 16% of its weapons from Israel, making it the second-largest supplier. SIPRI also cited Germany's purchase of the long-range air defense system, Arrow 3, last year as evidence of their ties.

Last year, the German Economic Ministry confirmed that the government allowed exports of almost U$323 million to Israel up to November 2, 2023, almost 10 times as much for the entire 2022.

Officials in Berlin have repeatedly said that Israel's security is Germany's "reason of state." German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius also claimed that Israel had requested munitions for its navy, and would meet the requests as they came in.

Other countries supplying arms to Israel

Other countries, such as the UK, Canada, and the Netherlands, also supply Israel with major aircraft components. Israel imports additional military hardware from other countries as well, including Italy which accounted for 0.9%.

Previously, Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly announced that Ottawa had halted arms exports to Israel due to the military offensive in the Gaza Strip following the October 7 attack, which has triggered a severe humanitarian crisis in Gaza. and aid agencies have warned of a looming famine in the Gaza Strip if aid does not continue to flow.

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