Spanish Socialists Visit Israel as Spain Plans to Acquire Israeli Missiles
By Palestine Chronicle Staff
A large delegation of Spanish politicians, which included far-right but also socialist parties, has recently toured the facilities of several Israeli arms manufacturers, the Spanish Tortuga website reported on Tuesday.
The report was based on an article published in El Salto, a few days earlier, by Daniel Lobado Bellido. The journalist said that the Spanish delegation was in Israel on January 13, and its visit included Israeli military facilities of Rafael, Elbit Systems, and Israel Aerospace Industries.
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The visit followed a recent decision by the Spanish Ministry of Defense to sign contracts, totaling 300 million euros to produce the Israeli Spike LR2 missile.
According to Bellido, the Spanish government intends to do more than assemble the Spike LR2 missiles for the Spanish army, but also for international buyers. This would make Spain a major export center for Israeli missiles.
The Spike LR2 is an Israeli missile, produced by the Israeli company Rafael. The Spanish government reportedly intends to produce the missile directly through a subsidiary that will operate directly in Spain.
The Spanish delegation to Israel, according to Bellido, was made of several political groups, including members of the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE), the People’s Party, a conservative and Christian-democratic political party, and Vox, a national-conservative political party.
Bellido reported that the “parliamentary delegation will inform the Ministry of Defense about its visit (…) and will influence the potential signature of the contract.”
(The Palestine Chronicle)