Every missile that falls on Gaza carries a story behind it. It not only carries the death of those below; It also carries the trajectory and negotiating skill of those who They were in charge of manufacturing it, test it and turn it precisely into a tool capable of murdering with the greatest possible effectiveness. That’s what it’s about.
The weapons that fuel the Gaza genocide They have a first and last name. Its manufacturers are powerful business empires that know how to build killing machines and, at the same time, have the necessary structures to guarantee that the business, like the missile that falls on the devastated Strip, will not fail.
“The arms industry tries to influence policy or win contracts in many ways. A large part of the lobby is about establishing contacts,” he tells Public Mark Akkermanresearcher at Stop Wapenhandel (the Dutch campaign against the arms trade).
Akkerman participated alongside Chloé Meulewaeterprofessor of International Relations and researcher at the Delàs Center for Peace Studiesin a work on the activity of arms industry lobbyists that was published in September 2023, shortly before Israel undertook the attacks on Gaza. The data obtained then was conclusive.
“The European arms industry has gradually been weaving closer and closer ties close with political leaders and the European institutions, seeking more funding (both public and private), long-term commitments and ever deeper participation in EU policies, processes and debates. European Union (EU)”says the document.
For its part, the EU “has been increasingly accepting these demands and adopting new steps towards European militarization“. Although the process was accelerated in the heat of the war in Ukraine, the truth is that none of this caught the arms companies by surprise: their lobbying tasks were already consolidated.
“A large part of the lobby consists of establishing contacts: many arms companies and their subsidiary organizations hold regular meetings with the European Commission and MEPs,” says the Dutch researcher.
In 2019, the European Commission established a new Directorate General for Defense and Space Industry (DG DEFIS) that functions as a service provider for the arms industry European.
After its launch, this body was headed by the EU Commissioner Thierry Bretonwhose nomination raised questions about possible conflict of interest: He had previously been a director of ATOS, a giant in the cybersecurity sector.
The report highlights that Breton – who resigned as commissioner on September 16 – launched “a continuous dialogue mechanism between the European Commission and industry through a new Commission Informal Group of Experts on Policies and Programs related to the European Union Space, Defense and Aeronautics Industry”.
Both the commissioner and other high-level officials also opened “other meeting spaces with arms industry representatives“, relationships that are essential to understanding the success of pressure groups.
More than 150 meetings
“Taken together, the ten largest arms companies in the EU and its two largest lobbies have held hundreds of meetings with the European Commission since 2014 and more than 150 meetings with MEPs since 2019,” the report reveals.
In their study, the researchers found that “arms companies are frequently invited to sessions” of the European Parliament, while “critical NGOs and researchers rarely have the opportunity to speak at such meetings.”
In statements to PublicAkkerman expressed his concern about the growing role of lobbies. “This is a dangerous developmentsince I don’t think there is any other sector in which the industry, motivated by its economic interests, participates so closely in the development of policies” he stated.
Meetings with Borrell
Between October 2022 and May 2023, three high-level meetings were held between the arms industry and EU policymakers. Two of these meetings were organized by the industry itself and the remaining one was led by the EU.
According to the report from ENAAT and the Delás Center, in those meetings they spoke “about common objectives of promoting closer cooperationincrease investments and strengthen the EU arms industry”.
The High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell“intervened in all” the meetings, while Breton was in the two meetings organized by the industry.
Likewise, “representatives of the European Defense Agency (EDA)DG DEFIS and the European Investment Bank, as well as numerous spokespersons for the main arms companies”.
The ‘lobby’ has achieved a high degree of influence on EU military policies
As the report highlights, “these industry efforts bear fruit”: the European Parliament “tends to vote overwhelmingly in favor of laws supporting the arms industrysuch as the European Defense Fund (EDF) and the Act to Support Ammunition Production (ASAP), and regularly includes in its resolutions demands for greater financing of this industry.
Thanks to those contacts, the lobby arms development made up of a group of large companies – including Leonardo, Thales and Airbus – “has achieved a high degree of influence in the formation of the nascent military policies of the EU”, as was confirmed with the creation of the EDF.
red lines
The document points out that “the voracious appetite of the arms industry was not satisfied with the creation of a specific budget item” in the EU. “Once the red line was crossed according to which community budgets could not finance activities of a military nature”, this industry “had access to a whole series of civil programsas if it were a business activity like any other.
These processes have been accompanied by astronomical economic figures. For example, the Ammunition Production Support Law “offers 300 million euros in subsidies to the arms industry to boost the production of ammunition and missiles until 2025.” But there is more.
“In concert with the industry, both the European Commission and the European Parliament are calling for a significant increase in financing of arms companies starting in 2025, as part of the 2021-2027 budget review,” the study warns.
The Domecq case
The revolving doors They are another fundamental element to understand the weight of lobby of the military industry in Europe. The report prepared by Meulewaeter and Akkerman cites the case of Jorge Domecqrecently appointed ambassador of Spain to Greece. Until February 2020, this diplomat acted as executive head of the AED.
Its tasks included “supporting the military capabilities of EU Member States and cooperating with and strengthening the European military industry.” In carrying out this role, Domecq “was in frequent contact with major arms companiesincluding Airbus, which later became his next employer.”
Domecq began as head of Public Relations and strategic advisor in the delegation of Airbus in Spain “just six months after his departure from the AED.” “In his new job, he dedicated himself to tasks of lobby and to advise the executive director Dirk Hokewhich already
knew from his previous professional stage, about political and strategic issues, thanks to his experience in the AED”, describes the study.
The investigators recall that Domecq “had to request authorization from the AED to work at Airbus but missed the deadline to do soinforming the Agency only two weeks before his first day of work and not initially providing sufficient information.
Israeli lobbies
Israeli arms companies also have powerful lobbies who seek to increase business. In the case of Spain, the Ministry of Defense that directs Margarita Robles maintains contracts with companies that manufacture weapons for the Government of Benjamin Netanyahu.
“The Israeli military industry is very close to the Government and the Defense Forces of that country and has a specific direction, the Directorate of International Defense Cooperation (SIBAT)”, Akkerman points out. Public.
That body, attached to the Israeli Ministry of Defense is in charge of “cooperation” with the military industry. “One of its tasks is to promote arms exports, for example by facilitating contacts with foreign governments“said the Dutch researcher.
In this way, Netanyahu’s government “basically functions as a lobbying organization for foreign sales, and it does so successfully: Israel is a major arms exporter“Akkerman highlights.
When offering their products, Israeli companies emphasize that they are previously experienced tools “on the battlefield.” “That boils down to the fact that they have been tested on Palestinians,” said the ENAAT expert.
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