The Israeli delegation in June to the Paris Air Show, the world’s most prestigious defense exhibition, will be scaled down. Ministry of Defense International Defense Cooperation Directorate (SIBAT) head Yair Kulas tells “Globes.” Next month Kulas will lead an especially large Israeli delegation to the DEFEA 2025 exhibition in Athens on May 6.
Israel has been targeted by France’s President Emmanuel Macron, who during the war has led a policy of using defense exhibitions in his country to achieve political and regional goals in the Middle East.
Macron’s campaign to thwart Israeli defense companies began at the Eurosatory exhibition in June last year, where he decided to exclude Israeli firms due to the start of military maneuvers in Rafah. The Israeli companies appealed to the French court, which overturned the decision, but the ruling came too late for them to exhibit. Five months later, Paris decided to keep Israeli companies away from the Euronaval naval exhibition, but in this case the ruling came on time and the companies were able to exhibit.
“The current situation with France is that we have registered for the Paris Air Show,” says Kulas. “Right now we will exhibit in a more reduced format than in the past because it takes a long time to prepare, and there have been concerns on both sides. In the end, it is public money and we went with a reduced format, but it was important for us and the defense industries to be there. This is the largest exhibition in the world, and we are not giving it up.”
“Choosing exhibitions carefully”
The leading defense exhibition in Greece, DEFEA (Defense Exhibition Athens), will be held for three days from May 6. At this exhibition, which will be attended by representatives of local and international defense industries, governments, the military, and security experts, 25 Israeli companies will be exhibiting alongside counterparts from countries such as Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar, the US, South Korea, France, and Germany. In contrast, the absence of Turkish companies that often exhibit internationally makes it clear to what extent Erdogan’s hostility not only toward Israel but also toward Greece is reflected in the defense exhibitions.
Kulas says, “There are a lot of exhibitions in the world, and we choose them very carefully. We are looking for a connection to that defense ministry, and there is a great connection with the Greek defense ministry, army to army, ministry to ministry, and CIBAT with its counterparts. The two sides have a long-standing relationship of trust.”
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The deep security connection between Jerusalem and Athens is reflected, among other things, in the negotiations that have been underway in recent months for the sale of Israeli air defense systems to Greece, in a deal worth an estimated $2 billion.
The Israeli companies that will exhibit in Athens include the three biggest, Elbit Systems, Israel Aerospace Industries and Rafael, which have close relationships with the Greek security forces. Other prominent Israeli companies that will appear include drone manufacturer Aeronautics; loitering munitions manufacturer UVision; and SmartShooter, which develops and manufactures advanced fire control systems.
What will the Israeli delegation in Greece exhibit?
Nine Israeli companies will exhibit the CIBAT pavilion, including: Manta Air, which will present advanced recovery systems for drones that enable the efficient recovery of valuable aircraft in a variety of operational scenarios; Robotican, which will demonstrate the Goshawk innovative autonomous drone interceptor for neutralizing aerial threats, and the Rooster hybrid drone for navigation in confined spaces and intelligence gathering; and RT LTA Systems, which will exhibit the Skystar series of tactical aerostats, capable of carrying a variety of sensors to altitudes of up to 500 meters, and the advanced Skyguard systems that can reach altitudes of up to 20,000 feet.
Kulas explains that at exhibitions companies look for places that also allow for meetings not only with locals. “When you come to an exhibition like this, you have the opportunity to talk to end users. The idea is to take advantage of setting up the Israeli pavilion for meetings with world figures, to sit down with defense ministries, to understand what is interesting and to direct them towards our industry.”
Do exhibitions still have an effect in the modern era? Aren’t video meetings enough?
“There is a difference between a video meeting and an organized meeting, which is sometimes informal. Although occasional clients are less common, a situation can happen, for example, where a Vietnamese person comes and wants a meeting. You didn’t plan it, but he is interested so you direct him. These exhibitions are not random. It is a meticulous process of setting up meetings, some with other industries, some are for connections and some are for maintaining ongoing contact. You maintain contact through the exhibitions, and it works wonders.”
Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on April 24, 2025.
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