It’s time to repair Israel’s Perception abroad
Without changing Israel’s global perception, the country will increasingly be like North Korea. Are you ready to live in North Korea?
As anyone reading Times of Israel knows, Israel’s global perception isn’t great.
And as a country without many natural resources other than sun, Israel’s economic viability is dependent on imports, and more importantly, exports.
In 2024, Israel exported $153.7 billion (approximately 504 billion NIS), with leading exports including integrated circuits, diamonds, broadcasting equipment, medical instruments, and refined petroleum. The leading countries Israel exports to are the United States, China, Ireland, Germany, and Hong Kong.
Israel’s perception is already impacting business
Rafael and Elbit recently lost more than $1 billion in contracts with Spain. Though cancellation of deals isn’t yet common, in the British parliament, two dozen lawmakers signed a motion calling on the government to rule out awarding any contracts to Elbit Systems UK, which is bidding for a $2.7 billion training contract with the UK Ministry of Defense. Israeli defense companies have also been banned from participating in arms fairs in London, Paris, and Dubai.
In Washington, DC, Shouk, a plant-based and fast-casual restaurant chain was forced to close the last of five locations and lay off the remaining staff. According to Shouk co-founder Dennis Friedman, “The ability to continue to operate wasn’t there. I feel terrible because Shouk wasn’t a political place; Shouk was a place for people to come together. To become a target and be mislabelled and thrown into things that aren’t true is unfortunate.”
Slowing Start-Up Nation
Over the last 30 years, Israel’s technology boom has helped the country grow economically. But start-ups might also face pressure because most investors are based outside of Israel.
While the Venture Capitalists (VCs) who invest in start-ups might not care about Israel’s perception, their investors, who supply the money being invested, might be less open to investing in Israel. VCs are funded by limited partners, which typically include large institutional investors like pension funds, insurance companies, and endowments from universities and foundations.
AkademikerPension, a $25 billion Danish fund that manages the pensions of Danish teachers and university lecturers, which announced in September that it would stop investing in Israeli state assets.
Likewise, in August, Norway’s $2 trillion wealth fund announced that it was divesting its investment from Caterpillar and five Israeli banks over ‘Gaza rights violations’. Regarding Caterpillar, Norway’s wealth fund divested of holdings in the company because bulldozers manufactured by the company are ‘being used by Israeli authorities in the widespread unlawful destruction of Palestinian property.’ Both San Francisco State University and the Presbyterian Church (in 2014) have divested of their holdings in Caterpillar, an American company with no Israeli assets.
The ceasefire has helped improve Israel’s perception as Germany resumes arms exports to Israel. But Germany has historical reasons for supporting Israel.
Action to change perception
Historically, Israeli PR or Hasbara hasn’t been that effective. Case in point: After the horrors of October 7th, look how quickly the global narrative turned against Israel.
So instead of telling or spinning, we need to do things that will change Israel’s perception.
One way to improve Israel’s global perception is to partner with some of our neighbors to show the benefits of peace in the Middle East for Israel and the other countries in the region.
The United Arab Emirates’ recently-announced initiative to become the Start-Up Capital of the World is a great way to start. If there is one country that knows how to build an ecosystem supporting start-ups, it’s Israel. Given Israel’s relationship with the UAE since the Abraham Accords and the UAE’s desire to succeed, such a partnership could be mutually beneficial.
Another option would be working more closely with Syria. Given our history with the country and its proximity to Israel, cultivating productive and mutually beneficial relations with Syria will also be good for Israel. And after more than a decade of civil war, the country is in need of support from Israel.
This isn’t a left-wing solution but a pragmatic one that will help improve Israel’s standing globally. And a story about Syrian farmers increasing their produce as a result of Israeli ingenuity and support will do more to improve Israel’s global perception than 100 press releases from the Israeli government.
We’re living in a different world where previously latent anti-Israel and anti-Semitic attitudes are being expressed more frequently and publicly, with less criticism, particularly from those under 30. And what’s going to happen in 10 and 20 years, when today’s twenty-somethings are managers and CEOs?
As Rahm Emanuel, a Democrat who was formerly mayor of Chicago and Ambassador to Japan, recently noted at a Jewish Federation event, ‘don’t expect the 2028 presidential candidates to visit Israel’, like his former boss, President Obama, did in 2008.
With the living hostages from Gaza home, now is the time to make substantive changes. If not, we might find ourselves in a world less willing to finance Israeli companies and buy Israeli products. Which of us is ready to live like we’re in North Korea?