Israeli arms exports reached a record US$ 19.2 billion in 2025, with purchases nearly doubling in the Asia-Pacific. Vietnam is one of Israel’s main partners, making it, its the second-largest supplier after Russia. Nguyễn Thị Thanh Nhàn, a businesswoman who fell out of favour with the authorities and was sentenced in absentia to 30 years in prison, played a key role in this. India, Thailand, and Singapore are also nurturing military ties with the Jewish state in order to develop their own capabilities.

Tel Aviv (AsiaNews) – Israeli military exports have reached a new all-time high, driven by purchases from Southeast Asian countries.

According to data released by the Israeli Ministry of Defence, foreign sales reached US$ 19.2 billion in 2025, a 30 per cent increase from US$ 14.8 billion in 2024, up for the fifth consecutive year.

Although Europe remains the Jewish state's main market, accounting for 36 per cent of exports (US$ 6.9 billion), purchases from the Asia-Pacific region nearly doubled, from approximately US$ 3.4 billion in 2024 to US$ 6.1 billion in 2025, equal to 32 per cent of total sales.

More than half of exports in 2025 were made through direct agreements between governments, worth approximately US$ 10 billion.

Vietnam is cited among Southeast Asian countries with the most consolidated military cooperation with Israel, to the point that Israel has become the second-largest arms supplier after Russia.

In recent years, Vietnam has sought to diversify its arms suppliers, reducing dependence on traditional partners (China, Russia, and the United States) while developing domestic technological capabilities, following a trend shared by several countries in Asia.

Among Israel's most important new partners is India, which, in an effort to reduce its historical dependence on Russia, took in about 34 per cent of Israel's military exports between 2020 and 2024.

The most important projects include the Barak-8 missiles jointly developed by Israel and the Indian Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), and the local production of more than 425,000 carbine assault rifles for the Indian Army.

Regarding Vietnam, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) began discussions in 2024 with Vietnamese companies for joint development and technology transfer projects.

Industry sources report a deal worth some US$ 680 million for the supply of two surveillance satellites, which are expected to boost Vietnam's intelligence and monitoring capabilities in the South China Sea.

Growing demand from Asia covers air defence systems, missiles, radar, surveillance technologies, and electronic platforms, a consequence of growing Chinese threats and the general rearmament of the entire region.

Vietnam, despite its economic reliance on China, has sought to forge alliances with various players in recent years and remains one of the countries on the frontline against Chinese maritime interference in the territorial waters of Southeast Asian countries.

The coastal defence EXTRA rocket launchers, purchased from Israel, for example, have been deployed on the Spratly Islands, atolls claimed by both Beijing and Hanoi.

Nguyễn Thị Thanh Nhàn, a businesswoman sentenced in absentia to 30 years in prison and now living in Germany, where she obtained government protection in exchange for information on arms trafficking in Asia, is said to have acted as an intermediary in many of the deals.

Despite growing European pressure on Israel over its conduct of the war against the Gaza Strip and Lebanon, the Israeli Defence Ministry maintains that demand for Israeli systems remains high.

This is a result, according to some analysts, of Israel's strategy, initiated in the 2000s, to reduce dependence on Western customers and build deeper partnerships in Asia.

But relations between Vietnam and Israel are not just about the arms trade. After the 7 October attacks, the two countries signed a free trade agreement, and their bilateral trade reached US$ 3.75 billion in 2025.

In January, Israeli airline Arkia inaugurated direct flights between Hanoi and Tel Aviv.

Recent relations with Vietnam are intertwined with those of other partners in the region. Thailand has begun local production of Spike missiles through a partnership with Rafael Advanced Defense Systems.

Singapore, despite some internal protests related to the war in Gaza, has chosen to modernise its drone fleet with new systems produced by the Israeli company Elbit Systems.

The sustainability of this expansion will depend, according to analysts, on the ability to transform simple arms sales into industrial cooperation, technology transfer, and co-production projects, a model increasingly sought by Asian governments seeking to develop autonomous defence capabilities.

• vietnam
• israel
• china
• india
• thailand
• singapore
• russia
• united states
• military cooperation
• weapons
• nguyễn thị thanh nhàn