The Japanese Robot Controversy Lurking in Israel’s Military Supply Chain

September 4, 2024:

Japan, for example, makes it relatively easy to export dual-use technologies to the United States and Europe, and vice versa. Because they are recognized as trusted countries under Japanese export law, companies in those states are generally free to use Japanese dual-use technology to produce arms—and to, in turn, export those arms to other states (subject to their own export controls).

This, itself, has drawn the BDS activists’ ire: They want FANUC to end its relationship with American defense contractors like General Dynamics and Lockheed Martin, which sell considerable advanced weaponry to Israel. “We demand that such business relationships be immediately terminated and that the two companies never do business with each other again,” Imano said in June. But the activists go further, arguing that FANUC is, despite what it says publicly, actually doing business with Israeli defense firms.

“FANUC sells its robots and provides maintenance and inspection services to Israeli military companies such as Elbit Systems,” Imano claimed.

FANUC has denied this charge. “When we sell products to Israel, we carry out the necessary transaction screening in accordance with Japan’s Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act, confirm the user’s business activities and intended use, and do not sell to Israel if the products are for military use,” the company wrote to HuffPost.

The company added that, after reviewing their records of the past five years, “we have not sold any products for military use to the Israeli companies Elbit Systems, IAI, BSEL, Rosenshine Plast, or AMI from our company or our European subsidiary. We have also not sold any products for military use to other Israeli companies from our company or our European subsidiary.” The company identified one instance where one of their robotic arms had been sold to an Israeli company that produces military hardware “after confirming that the machine was to be used for civilian medical purposes.”

At the same time, the company admitted that when they sell through intermediaries, of which Israel has several, they are not always able to guarantee “who the final customer is.”

There is, however, ample evidence that suggests FANUC arms have made their way into the Israel defense manufacturing sector. Multiple job listings posted by Elbit Systems, the primary domestic supplier of the Israel Defense Forces, list “knowledge of FANUC … controls” as either an advantage to job applicants or a requirement. One such job listing, from June, comes from Elbit Cyclone, the division that won a contract to produce fuselage components for the F-35 fighter jet. In January, Israel’s Ministry of Defense published a video showing a FANUC robotic arm at an Elbit factory, handling munitions.

Another Israeli company, Bet Shemesh Engines (BSEL), more than a decade ago created marketing videos and uploaded photos to their company website featuring the FANUC robotic arms. The CV of a former employee suggests the company used FANUC robotics to assemble aircraft engines, which may be used for civilian rather than military purposes. Bet Shemesh counts the Israeli Air Force as a major client.

Source link

tags

Abkhazia Afghanistan Africa Albania Algeria Andorra Angola Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bolivia Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Brazil Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cape Verde Central African Republic Chad Chile China Colombia Comoros Costa Rica Croatia Cuba Curacao Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic East Timor Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Fiji Finland France French Polynesia Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Greece Grenada Guam Guatemala Guinea Guyana Haiti Honduras Hong Kong Hungary Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Jordan Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Kosovo Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Macau Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Mauritania Mauritius Mexico Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Morocco Mozambique Myanmar Namibia Nepal Netherlands New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria North Korea North Macedonia Northern Cyprus Norway Oman Pakistan Palestine Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Republic of the Congo Romania Russia Rwanda Saint Lucia Samoa San Marino Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Korea South Sudan Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Sweden Switzerland Syria Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania Thailand Togo Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Uganda UK Ukraine United Arab Emirates Uruguay USA Uzbekistan Vatican City Venezuela Vietnam Western Sahara Yemen Zambia Zimbabwe