Publications
Memorandum No. 175, INSS, Tel-Aviv, June 2018

Economic trade between Israel and the EU countries has flourished over the past decade. Despite political disagreements, Europe is still Israel’s largest and most important market, both for exports and for imports. This dominance is particularly reflected in the Israeli food market, in Israel’s import of vehicles, in the pharmaceuticals market, and in technological and scientific cooperation. The immigration crisis and the terrorist threats in Europe have spurred a significant increase in defense exports from Israel to Europe, and in 2016 Europe became the second largest export destination for the Israeli arms industry, after Asia. The rift between Europe and the US may play into Israel’s hands in this context, particularly in the realm of military exports to Western Europe. On the other hand, the growing political tension between the EU and the government of Israel, the boycott threats, and the strengthening of the shekel against the euro threaten other aspects of trade, and particularly Israeli exports. In any scenario, the shift of Israeli exports to the emerging markets in China and India is not expected to replace Israel’s dependence on Europe any time soon.