HIBAPRESS
The Spanish Parliament approved, on Wednesday, a law imposing a ban on the export and import of weapons to and from Israel, a move supported by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, with the aim of "curbing the genocide in Gaza".
178 deputies voted in favor of the law against 169, after the government, which does not have a parliamentary majority, secured the support of four deputies from the far-left Podemos party. These deputies did not announce their position until Wednesday morning.
Sanchez had called, during a speech he gave at the United Nations headquarters in New York, within a conference on the "two-state solution", to grant the State of Palestine full membership in the international organization.
In a related context, the Spanish Ministry of Defense announced last month the cancellation of a $218 million deal with the Israeli company "Rafael" to purchase advanced guidance systems for "Lightning 5" type bombs, after Spain had previously canceled a $272 million deal for "Spike" anti-tank missiles from the same company.
Israeli concern about the impact of the decision
Sources in the Israeli defense industries expressed their fear that other European countries would follow Spain's lead, which could threaten the stability of Israeli arms exports, which reached $14.8 billion in 2024, half of which went to Europe.
A senior official told the economic newspaper "Calcalist": "Systems like Spike missiles can be easily transferred to other buyers, but the real concern lies in freezing new contracts, which, if it continues, could lead to a significant decline in exports by 2026 and a severe blow in 2027."
Another official pointed out that "relying on the Ministry of Defense alone is unrealistic," warning that global political pressure could limit the support of allies for Israel in the future.
