Despite its public stance against weapons deals with Israel, Spain has reportedly approved over €1 billion in contracts with Israeli defense companies since the Gaza conflict began.
Spain has reportedly authorized dozens of defense contracts with Israeli firms totaling more than €1 billion since the onset of the Gaza war, contradicting its declared suspension of arms dealings with Israel, according to findings released by researchers on Friday and quoted by AFP.
The revelations follow controversy over a now-cancelled bullet supply contract involving an Israeli company and Spain’s Civil Guard, which has reignited scrutiny of the Socialist-led government’s policies.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, a vocal critic of Israel’s military operations in Gaza, had pledged to halt arms transactions with Israel following the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack. However, data compiled by Centre Delas, a Barcelona-based organization focused on defense and security, paints a different picture.
The think tank reports that 46 contracts—valued at €1,044,558,955 —were awarded to Israeli defense companies via Spain’s public procurement platform. While some of these agreements have not yet been finalized, they include high-profile items such as missile systems and rocket launchers.
“It is clearly demonstrated that the government lied, there was no pledge, that was pure propaganda,” said Eduardo Melero, a co-author of the upcoming Centre Delas report, in comments to AFP.
Spain’s Interior Ministry responded by stating that it remains committed to its arms embargo and that some of the contracts cited were already annulled. The ministry added that items for self-defense purposes were not classified under the prohibition.
Spain’s Defense Ministry did not respond to AFP’s request for comment.
On Thursday, the Israeli Foreign Ministry condemned Spain’s cancellation of the bullet supply deal, accusing Madrid of prioritizing political agendas over national security.
Spain, it said, “continues to stand on the wrong side of history — against the Jewish state that is defending itself from terrorist attacks”.
The Spanish government has been a vocal critic of Israel’s war in Gaza, which followed the Hamas massacre in southern Israel on October 7, 2023.
In November of 2023, Spain’s Ambassador to Israel was summoned by the Foreign Ministry after Sanchez claimed that “Israel is violating international law and is carrying out indiscriminate killings in Gaza.”
Last April, Sanchez criticized what he called Israel’s “disproportionate response” in the Gaza war, saying it risks “destabilizing the Middle East, and as a consequence, the entire world”. More recently, reports indicated that Spain, a NATO ally, has been denying port access to cargo vessels reportedly transporting US weapons to Israel. The US later launched an investigation into those reports.
Spain and Israel have also been at odds ever since Spain, Norway, and Ireland formally recognized a Palestinian state in May of last year.
