Israeli small arms manufacturer Emtan and Spanish company Guardian Defense & Homeland Security, which is owned by Israelis, have signed a contract to provide 9,120 nine-millimeter pistols to the Spanish Federal Police. The deal is worth an estimated several million euros.
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This is the first time that an Israeli company has won a light arms deal from a Western European country.
The Ramon pistols are manufactured by Emtan, which was founded in 1977 and develops, manufactures and sells light arms including pistols, submachine guns and rifles to law enforcement agencies around the globe. The company has been awarded numerous government tenders worldwide and from Israel.
Guardian Defense & Homeland Security was founded in 2006 by Ilan Arzooan and Ariel Mazuz, both former officers in the Israeli security forces. Investors include Maj. Gen. (res.) Yom-Tov Samia, a former GOC Southern Command, who is a senior partner, and Moni Liman.
Emtan owner and CEO Reuven Zada said, "We are proud and honored that the Spanish Federal Police have chosen the Ramon pistol. Emtan provides a major emphasis on planning, materials and the reliability of the weapons it manufactures and we also see major interest from government bodies in Europe and other countries."
Samia said: "Europe in general and Spain, in particular, have a strong industry for manufacturing defense and security products and usually [tenders] of this magnitude are granted to the local industry. Despite the entry obstacles and complex bureaucracy, we at Guardian managed to establish ourselves in the Spanish and Portuguese security industry as leaders in the field for the past 15 years."
The win, according to the Defensa website, came after a "series of rigorous technical tests of 9x19mm pistols under consideration for the tender including the Glock 19 Generation 5/FS, the Beretta APX Centurion, the AREX Delta M Gen.2 SP, and the Heckler and Koch HK SFP9 S. The Ramon pistol won first place with a result of 38 points out of 40, with the Glock in second place with 28 points and the HK SFP9 S in third place with only 22 points."
However, the report added, even the price for each pistol was an important factor in the choice. The HK was offered for 385 euros while the Glock was offered for 306 euros, and the Ramon was offered for 269 euros.
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