A landmark defence collaboration between India and Israel is now under scrutiny, with allegations that Israel is independently marketing a jointly developed missile system while excluding key Indian technologies. The dispute centres on the Barak-8, or Medium-Range Surface-to-Air Missile (MR-SAM), a project that once symbolised the strength of Indo-Israeli defence ties.
The MR-SAM was developed through a partnership between India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), with an initial investment of ₹2,500 crore. The system, designed to counter a range of aerial threats, including fighter jets, drones, and ballistic missiles, boasts an effective range of up to 150 km in its extended version. Its advanced features, such as a dual-pulse rocket motor and an active radar seeker, have made it a cornerstone of India’s air defence strategy.
However, recent reports suggest that Israel has been selling the Barak-8 under the brand name “Barak MX” to countries like Azerbaijan and Morocco, without including critical Indian-made components, particularly the missile’s advanced rocket motor. This has sparked concerns within India’s defence establishment about the fairness of the partnership and the future of such joint ventures.
“The core of the dispute lies in the claim that these export versions do not contain the dual-pulse rocket motor, which was specifically developed by India’s DRDO for the project,” said an Indian defence official. “By using its own propulsion system in export models, Israel is sidelining India’s technological contribution.”
This friction has raised questions about intellectual property rights (IPR) and the ownership of the missile’s technical data. While India was a significant financial and technical partner, Israel appears to maintain primary control over the core technology. This perceived imbalance has led to concerns in New Delhi about the equitable nature of the partnership, potentially creating a trust deficit that could impact future defence collaborations.
The MR-SAM system has proven its effectiveness in real-world scenarios, including intercepting Hezbollah drones in 2022 and neutralising a Pakistani Fatah-2 missile during the 2025 India-Pakistan conflict. Despite this shared success, the current dispute threatens to undermine the trust that has been built over years of cooperation.
For India, the MR-SAM project was a significant step towards technological self-reliance under its “Atmanirbhar Bharat” policy. Major Indian defence firms, including Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) and Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), played integral roles in producing essential parts of the system. The collaboration enabled India to gain sophisticated defence technology and significantly boost its domestic manufacturing capabilities.
For Israel, the partnership provided crucial funding and access to India’s large defence market, facilitating the development of a next-generation air defence system. However, the unilateral marketing of the Barak-8 by Israel has raised questions about the long-term sustainability of such partnerships.
As the dispute unfolds, it is clear that the future of Indo-Israeli defence collaboration hinges on resolving these concerns. The outcome will not only shape the trajectory of the Barak-8 programme but also influence broader strategic ties between the two nations. The need for transparency, equitable benefit-sharing, and mutual respect for technological contributions will be critical in determining whether this partnership can overcome its current challenges and continue to thrive.
