Netanyahu: Israel investing more than $100 billion in bid for independent arms industry

 Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that because of lessons learned during its fighting over the past two years, Israel is working to gain as much independence as possible in its weapons production.

“I approved, along with the defense minister and finance minister, a sum of NIS 350 billion [$108 billion] over the next decade to build an independent Israeli munitions industry,” Netanyahu says in a speech at a graduation ceremony for Israel Air Force pilots.

“We want to reduce our dependence on all players, including friends,” he says, after allies including the US, UK, and Germany all imposed various restrictions on weapons sales to Israel since the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack . Still, many countries around the world, including Germany, “want to buy from us more and more systems,” he says.

And in a thinly veiled reference to Turkey’s quest to receive the F-35 fighter jet from the US, Netanyahu promises that Israel will “prevent whoever must be prevented from receiving these instruments.”

Netanyahu stresses that Israel’s “aerial superiority in the Middle East is a cornerstone of our national security,” and that it rests on Israel’s skilled pilots and “the best aircraft in the world.”

During US President Donald Trump’s first term, the US removed Turkey, a NATO ally, from its flagship F-35 fighter jet program, after Ankara purchased the S-400 surface-to-air missile system from Russia. Anxious to bolster its air power, Turkey has proposed to European partners and the US ways it could swiftly obtain the fighter jets as it seeks to make up ground versus regional rivals such as Israel.

Turkey is one of the world’s most outspoken critics of Israel, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan often accusing Israel of genocide over the past two years, and praising Hamas.

Netanyahu promises that Israel “will respond accordingly” to Hamas violations of the Gaza ceasefire, including the wounding of an IDF officer in Rafah today.

He says that neither Hamas nor Hezbollah have any intention of disarming. “We are taking care of that as well,” says Netanyahu about the Lebanese terror group, adding that Israel still has scores to settle with Yemen’s Houthis and with Iran.

After his tough talk, Netanyahu notes that “expanding the circle of peace remains at the top of our agenda.”

He promises to bring the body of Master Sgt. Ran Gvili, the last remaining slain hostage in Gaza, home to Israel.

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