You need our air defences, Israeli arms maker tells Europe

Whether they like it or not, Europeans need Israeli arms, Boaz Levy, the CEO of Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), the country’s biggest ballistic missile defence system maker, told POLITICO.

As Israel’s air and land offensive in the Gaza Strip drags on, Israeli arms makers like state-owned IAI are on the lookout for fresh deals with European leaders keen to bolster their air defences in light of the threat posed by Russia.

Levy’s message to Europeans: You’ll need the kind of air defences that have done so well protecting Israel from the rockets and missiles fired by Hamas and Hezbollah.

“The way that we are dealing with the types of threats that we are facing these days is actually a mirror for ... other places in the world,” said Levy, speaking from Tel Aviv.

Levy has a vested interest, of course, in the Europeans seeing things this way. His company set up an elaborate stall at this week’s ILA Berlin Air Show, one of the most important dates in the calendar for contractors seeking to sell their wares to European militaries.

Pointing to Ukraine as a salient example of the critical need for advanced air defenses, Levy said future warfare won’t just be about protecting military assets, but also densely populated civilian centres from rocket, missile and drone attacks.

Just days before Hamas launched its offensive on Israel last October, Germany signed a €4 billion deal to buy the Arrow-3 ballistic missile defence system, made by IAI with help from Boeing. The purchase was aimed at bolstering Germany’s air defences following Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine.

In April, Israel deployed the Arrow-3 to fend off a barrage of Iranian-supplied missiles and drones. The system was largely responsible for Israel intercepting 99 per cent of the projectiles coming in, said Levy: “We are bringing to the table a proven system.”

The system is the long-range component of Israel’s air-defence network, which includes the short-range Iron Dome and the medium-range David’s Sling. Arrow-3 can shoot down ballistic missiles outside the earth’s atmosphere — its 2,400-kilometer range is far longer than the U.S.-made Patriot or locally-made IRIS-T SLM systems now used by Germany.

The company is also touting the Heron TP combat drone, which Israeli Defense Forces have used in Gaza, at its pavilion in Berlin.

Not all European governments look kindly upon IAI’s sales campaign.

France, long wary of signing arms deals with foreign companies, has responded to Israel’s assault on Rafah by banning Israeli contractors from appearing at the Eurosatory arms fair in Paris this month.

Germany is a much friendlier terrain for Israeli weapons makers. Touring the Berlin air show, Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited the company’s elaborate display — a gesture of support for a contractor that has fast become a big part of Germany’s defence plans. At the stand, government officials and military brass enjoyed beer and bagels in view of a life-size model of an Arrow-3 interceptor.

Despite the French opposition, Berlin has made Arrow-3 a core part of the Sky Shield air defence initiative that it’s leading, in which 21 countries plan to jointly procure and develop air defence systems for Europe, including systems built by non-NATO countries.

Despite increased demand in Israel for IAI’s interceptors, Levy insists that his company will deliver the systems Berlin has ordered by 2025.

“There is no slippage on the timeline,” he said.