Internal document reveals: Ministry of Defense draws inspiration from China | Exclusive

An internal document that reached N12 reveals an examination of armament policy. The Ministry of Defense recommends drawing inspiration from China's buildup program. According to the document, the United States is lagging behind China in many areas.

The Ministry of Defense is re-examining Israel's armament policy and drawing inspiration from the Chinese model — this emerges from an internal ministry document that reached N12 and which we are publishing today (Monday). The examination is being conducted against the backdrop of the U.S. military's munitions challenges and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's intention to grant an additional 350 billion shekels to the defense establishment over the next decade.

The document, written in the Defense Export Control Agency (SIBAT) and titled 'China's Technological and Industrial Policy,' recommends that Israel adopt principles from the Chinese buildup program. At SIBAT, they explain that the recommendation stems, among other things, from disappointment with the policy of the United States, Israel's closest ally.

'As clearly emerges from the war in Ukraine and to a large extent also from the war against Iran, the inter-power struggle in the coming decade will not be decided only on the battlefield and by the size of the army, but by the ability of states to maintain industrial resilience and secure supply chains, which will know how to provide the army with munitions endurance in a prolonged war,' the document states.

However, U.S. President Donald Trump downplayed concerns over the weekend, saying that the U.S. has almost unlimited stockpiles of some types of ammunition, although he admitted that the stockpiles of certain munitions have decreased.

According to the document's authors, the United States is lagging behind China in many areas regarding preparation for a possible confrontation. The document describes how China has built a powerful hybrid system in recent years that mobilizes the market for its political and military goals. Although the Ministry of Defense acknowledges that the Chinese model could lead to waste and harm to innovation, they argue that its massive industrial base ensures it will continue to shape the rules of the global game.

Resilience before efficiency

The new policy proposed by the Ministry of Defense promotes a concept of 'resilience before efficiency,' which is an alternative to the Western model that sanctifies efficiency and low costs. At the Defense Export Control Agency, they clarify that the West can no longer rely on free-market mechanisms in the face of a Chinese hybrid system that subordinates the market to the party's goals. Although Israel is not directly facing China, the Ministry of Defense believes that the multiplicity and diversity of arenas it is expected to face require it to consider similar thinking.

The discussions on changing the policy are taking place in continuation of the change in Israeli policy that was expressed in Netanyahu's 'Sparta speech.' In this speech, which he delivered in September 2025, Netanyahu argued that we will have to adapt more and more to an economy that has autarkic characteristics — that is, an economy that feeds itself without dependence or trade with the world.

However, the Prime Minister's plan to increase the budget by 350 billion shekels for the defense establishment is encountering significant opposition from the Ministry of Finance and the Bank of Israel. The Ministry of Defense document emphasizes the urgent need for the security of the IDF's supply chains in a prolonged war.