India Steps Up Defense Shipments to Israel With Over 2,500 Military Cargoes

India has stepped up military exports to Israel, delivering thousands of shipments of weapons, artillery components, and drone parts to Israeli defense contractors over a two-year period, according to official trade data compiled by Amnesty International.

Between October 2023 and November 2025, New Delhi authorized at least 2,596 military cargoes destined for Israel.

The transfers mark a significant evolution in a defense relationship traditionally defined by Israeli hardware sales to New Delhi.

Deepening Supply Lines

Major Israeli contractors, including Elbit Systems, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), and Rafael, have embedded their operations within Indian manufacturing infrastructure.

This integration follows Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s "Make in India" initiative, which mandates a minimum threshold of 50 percent local defense production.

Munitions and Components

Amnesty's analysis of New Delhi's trade registers revealed that Indian suppliers dispatched 564,970 explosive ammunition components, including artillery shell casings and drone warheads, alongside 390,516 small arms parts and 298 military vehicle components.

Among the primary recipients was Elbit Systems, which imported Indian-made 155mm artillery shells and explosive warheads for its Skystriker loitering munitions.

The trade figures excluded dual-use civilian goods as well as components intended for air defense systems.

Strategic Interdependence

Despite the influx of Indian components, New Delhi remains Israel's largest defense customer, accounting for 29 percent of Israeli military exports between 2021 and 2025, according to SIPRI data.

Total Israeli defense sales reached $71 billion during this period, overseen by SIBAT, the Ministry of Defense's export directorate.

Israeli Defense Ministry director general Maj. Gen. (res.) Amir Baram emphasized the broader strategic alignment during a recent address, stating: "The war has sharpened the cost of Iranian empowerment for all parties in the region. It has created an identity of interests to form a broader alliance, from India, through the UAE to Greece and Cyprus."

Regulatory Frameworks

India ranks as the world's second-largest defense importer after Ukraine, relying on Russia for 40 percent of its procurement, France for 29 percent, and Israel for 15 percent.

Rights monitors highlighted that India abstained from the 2013 UN Arms Trade Treaty and cited "critical structural failures" in New Delhi's export oversight, including a "Lack of an explicit requirement for human rights due diligence."

The sustained flow of Indian components comes as Israel continues to receive military supplies from the U.S. and Germany, while utilizing transit routes through European nations such as Slovenia and France.