Israel’s Soft Power Is Its Hard Power — SkimNews
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- Israel announced a $3.5 billion defense deal with Greece that includes David's Sling (range up to 186 miles), the Barak MX system, and air surveillance radars, creating an integrated shield against aircraft, drones, cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, and precision-guided weapons.
- Cypriot Defense Minister Vasilis Palmas said explicitly that Greece, Cyprus, and Israel all "face a threat from Turkey," a fellow NATO member—highlighting the anti-Turkey geometry of the arrangement despite Athens not naming Turkey in its official statement.
- India deployed jointly-developed Israeli weapons, notably the Barak 8 surface-to-air missile, during Operation Sindoor against Pakistan in May 2025; Netanyahu said the Israeli-supplied equipment "worked very well," and India publicly credited the systems.
- The UAE has stayed committed to the Abraham Accords despite the Gaza war, receiving Iron Dome batteries and Iron Beam laser interceptors from Israel during Iranian attacks; the UAE has absorbed over 500 Iranian ballistic missiles and 2,000 drones, while the U.S. has burned through half its Patriot and THAAD missile stocks.
- The IMEC trade corridor would link India, the UAE, Israel, and Greece while bypassing Turkey, but Saudi Arabia's participation remains uncertain and the route is not yet operational.
- All of Israel's defense partners—Greece, Cyprus, India, the UAE—have condemned both the Gaza bloodshed and Hamas, and publicly back a Palestinian state, yet continue deepening military ties with Israel, a pattern Israeli analysts credit to dependence on Israeli air defense.
Why it matters: The $3.5 billion Greece deal converts Israeli military capability into diplomatic resilience, keeping the UAE inside the Abraham Accords while Netanyahu assembles a counter-Turkey defense bloc. For Greece and Cyprus, dependence on Israeli air defense is now operational—the U.S. has burned through half its Patriot and THAAD missile stocks, leaving Israel to fill a vacuum traditional security guarantors won't.
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