German Left Party opposes Volkswagen’s planned defense deal with Israeli firm

German auto giant Volkswagen’s revived plans to convert production at its Osnabruck plant to military equipment in partnership with Israel’s state-owned Rafael drew sharp condemnation on Friday from the opposition Left Party, Anadolu reports.

Thomas Gross, the party’s mayoral candidate in Osnabruck for next month’s election, strongly criticized Volkswagen’s management over the controversial proposal and for leaving thousands of workers in the dark about their future.

Cooperating with an Israeli state-owned enterprise is incompatible with Osnabruck’s tradition as a “City of Peace,” Gross said in a statement to Anadolu, citing the city’s legacy as the birthplace of the 1648 Peace of Westphalia, which helped lay the foundations of modern international law.

He added that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is responsible for numerous war crimes in Gaza, and that international human rights organizations believe they amount to genocide.

Gross emphasized that viable options exist to preserve civilian manufacturing in Osnabruck without converting the site into a defense facility.

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“The Left Party supports the proposal to produce minibuses at the plant, which are urgently needed for public transportation in rural areas,” Gross said. “In our view, it is far more urgent to improve climate protection and climate adaptation than to pour billions into military buildup.”

German media reported on Friday that Volkswagen, the state of Lower Saxony, and Rafael are nearing an agreement to manufacture military equipment at the site. Under one proposal, Volkswagen would transfer portions of the facility to Lower Saxony, which would then form a joint venture with Rafael.

In July, Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund—Volkswagen’s third-largest shareholder—vetoed an earlier draft of the defense partnership. The revised arrangement bypasses direct cooperation between Volkswagen and Rafael to address Qatari concerns, according to media reports.

Volkswagen’s supervisory board is scheduled to meet on Sept. 4, when a decision could be made. The Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung reported that Lower Saxony could invest at least €200 million ($232 million) in the project.

Volkswagen earlier confirmed it was in talks with several defense contractors about the Osnabruck plant, where car production is set to end after 2027. Chief Executive Oliver Blume said any company involvement would be limited to military transport vehicles, not weapons.

Local media reports indicate talks with Rafael Advanced Defense Systems are focused on manufacturing support components for the Iron Dome missile defense system, including heavy transport trucks, launch units, and power generators.