There’s long been a trend of Western governments partnering with the Israeli defence sector.
Here’s a recent example in the Australian state of Victoria (via an ABC story by Jessica Longbottom):
Victoria quietly signed an agreement with Israel’s Ministry of Defence (IMOD) a year ago to collaborate on projects and foster trade relations, deepening the state’s ties with an increasingly controversial partner.
The state government says the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) — a non-binding document signalling the intentions of both parties — aims to identify projects that can deliver advanced manufacturing capabilities and highly skilled jobs for Victoria.
I was asked to comment:
Independent journalist Antony Loewenstein, a long-time critic of Israeli policies and author of the Walkley-winning book The Palestine Laboratory, said it was concerning Victoria appeared to be trying to get closer to the companies through the MoU.
“I’ve got no problem with the idea of finding better ways to manage a clearly growing bushfire problem. That’s not the issue,” he said.
“The issue is who you’re partnering with.”