• Morocco has selected Israel’s Elbit Systems as its primary weapons supplier, acquiring 36 Atmos 2000 artillery systems.
• Israel is now Morocco’s third-largest arms supplier, accounting for 11% of its arms imports.
Morocco has selected Israel’s Elbit Systems as its primary weapons supplier, solidifying a growing military partnership. According to the French newspaper La Tribune, the Moroccan Armed Forces signed a contract to acquire 36 Atmos 2000 self-propelled artillery systems from the Israeli defense firm.
The arms deal follows the 2020 normalisation agreement between Morocco and Israel, brokered under then-U.S. President Donald Trump. As part of the agreement, the U.S. formally recognised Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara, a territory occupied by Morocco since the 1970s.
This latest acquisition cements Israel’s status as Morocco’s third-largest arms supplier, accounting for 11% of the kingdom’s total weapons imports, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). While Morocco and Israel have maintained discreet military and intelligence cooperation for over six decades, their relationship expanded significantly after the signing of the Abraham Accords.
By 2023, bilateral trade between the two nations had more than doubled, reaching $116.7 million compared to $56.2 million in 2022. This surge represented the fastest trade growth among Arab countries that normalised relations with Israel in 2020, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Sudan.
Despite deepening economic and security ties, Morocco’s leadership has remained critical of certain Israeli policies. On Saturday, Rabat condemned a proposed plan by Trump to relocate Palestinians from Gaza, calling it a “dangerous precedent” that contravenes international and humanitarian law. Meanwhile, trade in sectors such as agriculture and arms continues to expand.
