Israeli Defense Chief Slams Finance Ministry over Delays in Critical Military Deals

Israel’s Ministry of Defense Director General, Maj. Gen. (Res.) Amir Baram, has accused the Ministry of Finance of stalling vital defense funding amid escalating regional threats.

At a management forum this week, Baram said the finance ministry was “diverting attention and focusing on issues whose impact is very small compared to the serious security threats emerging from Iran, and from other arenas near and far.”

He said that after two years of “a powerful and unprecedented multi-sector war” across seven fronts, Israel must urgently replenish its forces. “Given the focus of our enemies' efforts, the State of Israel is now obligated to invest in massive resupply, in an emergency format. We must act in every way to restore the worn-out fighting formations to full capability,” Baram stated.

Baram charged that the Finance Ministry is blocking dozens of essential procurement deals worth billions of shekels—covering armaments, tank spare parts, drones for maneuvering units, and fortifications for border communities near Lebanon and Gaza. He added that the ministry is also refusing to authorize the construction of a barrier on the eastern border, despite approval by the Ministerial Committee for Equipping and the visible rise in threats.

Rejecting the finance ministry’s comparison to the post-Yom Kippur War era, Baram said the current defense budget stands at 6.7% of GDP—far below the 35% that once burdened the economy. “Our budgetary requirement will bring it to only 5% of GDP in about two years,” he said, calling the ministry’s stance “shortsighted given the scale of current challenges.”