Morocco selects Israel's Elbit Systems as major weapons supplier
Morocco has selected Israel's Elbit Systems as one of the kingdom's main weapons suppliers.
According to French newspaper La Tribune, the Moroccan army signed a contract to purchase 36 Atmos 2000 self-propelled artillery systems from the Israeli company.
The move follows growing tensions between the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces (FAR) and the French company KNDS, which had been one of Morocco’s previous main weapons supplier.
La Tribune said that Morocco "complained to the French group about recurring problems with the artillery systems that were supplied", referring to technical failures in the Caesar artillery systems, which Rabat ordered in 2020 and partially received in 2022.
Morocco and Israel signed a normalisation agreement in 2020 following negotiations overseen by then-US President Donald Trump.
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The move also saw the US recognising Moroccan sovereignty over the Western Sahara region, which has been occupied by the kingdom since the 1970s.
The new arms deal consolidates Israel's position as Morocco’s third-largest weapons supplier - after the US then France - accounting for 11 percent of its total arms imports, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
While Morocco and Israel have a 60-year history of cooperation in military and intelligence matters, their ties deepened significantly after the signing of the so-called Abraham Accords.
Following the normalisation agreement, Morocco secured deals to purchase Israel’s highly coveted Barak 8 missile defence system, Elbit Hermes drones and its spy satellite system to use in its ongoing war with the Polisario Front. The Sahrawi independence movement has clashed with Moroccan forces in recent years, and demands a self-determination referendum for the region as recommended by the UN.
In March 2024, the French daily L’Humanite published an investigation revealing that Morocco killed dozens of civilians, including children, in Western Sahara using Israeli weapons.
Growing arms trade
In 2023, trade between Morocco and Israel doubled, reaching $116.7m compared to $56.2m in 2022. This increase marked the fastest growth among the Arab countries that also established ties with Israel in 2020, i.e. the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Sudan.
Despite Morocco normalising ties with Israel, the kingdom’s leadership has criticised Israeli actions on several occasions, even as political and economic relations, including trade in agriculture and arms, continue to expand.
On Saturday, Morocco warned that a proposed plan by Trump to relocate Palestinians from Gaza would be a “dangerous precedent” that violates international and humanitarian law.
According to Israeli media, Morocco is among the destinations considered for the resettlement of Palestinians, alongside Egypt, Jordan, Somalia and Puntland, an autonomous territory in northern Somalia.
Rabat's rejection of the plan aligns with statements from other Arab officials, including Saudi Arabia, which have strongly opposed Trump’s plan, which he presented alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House last week.
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