Did you know there is an Israeli military contractor in the Grand Rapids area?

Eight years ago, GRIID reported on an MLive story, which announced that MDOT would be contributing nearly half a million dollars for road improvements because of two expanding companies in Kent and Ottawa county.

One of those companies that benefited from MDOT’s road improvements was Pasan North America, which is located at 3195 Wilson Dr NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49534.

According to their website, Plasan North America, “is a Tier One supplier to defense contractors and a leader in composite material technology in the design and development of a variety of military ground vehicles.”

However, Plasan North America is not just any military contractor, they are an Israeli-owned military contractor with facilities in the US, France and Israel. Plasan not only makes weapons, but provides “security resources and solutions” that focus on Border Protection, Special Forces Operations, Intelligence Missions, Disaster Management, and Convoy & VIP Protection. Here is a sample of “services” they offer with the products, which is taken from their own promotional material. Plasan is part of the robust Israeli Military Industrial Complex, which is the subject of a book by journalist Antony Loewenstein, entitled, The Palestine Laboratory: How Israel Exports the Technology of Occupation Around the World.

Plasan has a facility just northwest of Walker, Michigan, near the Humane Society of West Michigan.  According to Plasan North America, this location is listed at the bottom of the their website. Speaking of that website, checkout the video that plays on the main page, along with the types of military vehicles they make components for, military vehicles that are being used in the current Israeli assault on Gaza.

Now, the only reason that Plasan North America has a facility in the Grand Rapids area is because they were recruited by The Right Place Inc. in 2015.  This fits within the larger role of The Right Place, which is to attract businesses to West Michigan, but it is also a reflection of the business agency’s growing relationship with the State of Israel.

This relationship between The Right Place and Israel is directly through the Michigan Israel Business Bridge (MIBB), a Bloomfield Hills-based entity which promotes business relationships between Michigan and Israeli businesses, including the promotion of Israeli products. Brad Comment, Senior Vice President of Investor Relations at the Right Place Inc. sits on the Michigan Israel Business Accelerator Board of Directors, along with another Grand Rapids business person, James Meeks with Rapids Venture.

It seems to me that Plasan North America, The Right Place Inc. and the Michigan Israel Business Accelerator are all entities that we need to know about and potentially organize campaigns against for their role in supporting the current Israeli assault on Gaza and the decades long Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands.