JERUSALEM: Israeli defence exports hit an all-time high of US$12.5 billion last year, with Arab countries that recently established ties accounting for nearly a quarter of purchase contracts, officials said Wednesday.
The defence ministry, which oversees and approves the exports of Israel's defence industries, said one quarter of deals were for drone systems, with "missiles, rockets and air defence systems" making up another 19%.
Ministry figures show total exports have doubled over the past nine years.
A breakdown of the regions to which the goods are exported showed a leap among Abraham Accords countries from $853 million (9%) in 2021 to $2.96 billion (24%) in 2022.
The US-brokered Abraham Accords from 2020 saw Israel normalise ties with the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Morocco.
The defence ministry would not provide further details.
"Global instability increases the demand for Israeli air defence systems, drones, UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) and missiles, and we continually work to preserve our capabilities and strengthen them," defence ministry director general Eyal Zamir said in a statement.
The German parliament on Wednesday approved a $4.3-billion deal to purchase Israel's Arrow 3 air defence system, as the country moves to bolster its defences following Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year.
The budget committee in the lower house of parliament gave the green light for an initial payment of 560 million euros, a committee source told AFP.
Israel's Rafael Defense Systems on Wednesday said it had developed a hypersonic missile interceptor, which it planned to unveil at the Paris Air Show next week.
