PM Modi embarked on a two-day state visit to Israel on February 25th at the invitation of Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu, amid the US’s massive deployment of forces in the region. The visit comes nine years after PM Modi set a precedent of becoming the first Indian Prime Minister to visit Israel in 2017. This was followed by a four-day visit of PM Netanyahu to India in February 2018. The High-level back-to-back visits and sustained engagement have energised the relationships and fostered genuine respect between Indians and Israelis to a new high.
The marked upswing in
ties was accompanied by an upbeat economic engagement, with bilateral trade
reaching a new high of $10.77 billion (excluding defence) in 2022-23, fell to
$3.62 billion in 2024-25 due to regional security issues and trade route disruptions.
The dastardly October 7 Hamas attacks have fundamentally altered the strategic
landscape of the Middle East, ending the illusion of stability. Countries which
stood with Israel immediately after the attack started recalibrating their
position. As the conflict in Gaza continued, Israel faced partial economic
sanctions, an arms embargo and even diplomatic isolation. But Indian engagement
with Israel hardly changed. On the contrary, it has intensified and stabilised.
India’s long-term defence cooperation remained stable as it continued to import
defence supplies from Israel.
As per Stockholm
International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), India is the largest defence
importer of Israeli defence equipment, accounting for 34% of sales from
2000-2024, worth $20.5 billion. By 2024, the tactical defence purchases transitioned
into a partnership with Israeli companies setting up subsidiaries and joint
ventures in India, in tune with the ‘Make in India’. By opening production
units in India, Israel seeks to anchor New Delhi as its gateway to Asia and
penetrate newer markets. Promoting this mutually beneficial cooperation,
countries shifted toward co-production, co-development, and transfer of
technology, which is the core of the long-term MoU defence cooperation signed
in November 2025. It provided a policy framework for defence industrial
cooperation, Science & Technology, AI and cybersecurity.
As India seeks to
create an ‘impregnable’ multilayered air defence to thwart Pakistani attacks,
India’s appetite for Israeli systems and weapons has increased significantly. Israeli
weapons- Harop loitering munitions, SkyStriker drones, Rampage air-to-surface
missiles with their precision strikes- gave
India an upper hand during Operation Sindoor. As per reports, India is seeking
to make $8.6 billion in defence purchases from Israel in 2026. While defence
has been the central pillar of the India-Israeli partnership, the strategic
convergences are further bringing the nations closer. Both countries have been the
worst victims of ideologically motivated terrorism.
Invited to address
the special plenary of the Knesset, PM Modi, in a rare honour and a first ever
for an Indian Prime Minister, opened his speech by offering deepest condolences
of 1.4 billion Indians to the families shattered by the Oct 7 terror attack.
Extending solidarity to Israel in the fight against terror, he said, “We feel
your pain. We share your grief. India stands with Israel-firmly, with full
conviction-in the moment and beyond”. Even as the opposition back in India
continued to egg on PM Modi about the Israeli genocide, he reiterated, “No
cause can justify the murder of civilians. Nothing can justify terrorism”, underscoring,
“terror
anywhere threatens peace everywhere”.
India adopts a
zero-tolerance policy towards terrorism and has been at the forefront in global
fight against terrorism. India and Israel have a longstanding cooperation on
terrorism. With reports of Hamas joining hands with Inter-Services Intelligence
(ISI) and sharing the stage with Jaish-e- Mohammad (JeM) and Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT)
at a public conference in PoJK, both countries might intensify intelligence
sharing and counter terrorism cooperation. Indeed, the 10th
meeting of the India-Israel Joint Working Group on Counterterrorism concluded
on Feb 24th, ahead of PM Modi’s visit.
Endorsing India’s commitment to fight terror and its
support to Israel, PM Netanyahu, in his welcome remarks, stated, “Immediately after the terrible massacre of October 7-
you stood clearly, morally firm with Israel.. You did not flinch. You did not
waver. You did not give excuses. You stood next to Israel. You stood by Israel.
You stood for Israel”. India recognised
Israel in 1950 but established diplomatic relations only in 1992. During this
period, India actively championed the Palestinian cause but continued to
receive Israeli weapons and intelligence support during wars. For the past
seven decades, India has been reluctant to come out in the open assertively. It changed with 2017 PM Modi’s visit.
PM Modi’s present
visit, coming in the wake of the US-Iran nuclear negotiations of February 6,
has turned the region into a powder keg. Unwavered by the regional tensions and
the looming threats of military strikes, as a testimony of steady friendship,
PM Modi travelled to Israel. Amid geopolitical turbulence, uncertainty and
conflict, displaying a rare strategic confidence, PM Modi preferred to ground
the partnership in the age-old traditional links. Echoing this in the Knesset
speech, redefining his outreach, PM Modi presented himself as a “representative
of an ancient civilisation”. Invoking the ancient ties between the Indus Valley
and Jordan Valley, insulating the strategic ties from the underlying complex
geopolitical tensions, he fostered civilisational alignment.
By reimaging the ties
through a civilisational lens, PM Modi completely de-hypenated Indian ties with
Israel and Palestine. Political compulsions and shackles of minority
appeasement severely constrained India-Israeli relations. Placing the Israeli
ties on a civilisation pedestal, Modi scripted a new chapter. This delineation
of India-Israeli ties from New Delhi’s commitment to the Palestinian issue will
allow the standalone relations to flourish to their full potential. Shattering
decades-long ambiguity and reticence through civilisational decoupling, Modi infused
a new momentum into the bilateral partnership to thrive on the strength of
shared interests and values.
At a time when the
West is doubling down on Israel over the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, PM Modi
redefined and consolidated ties with Israel on the grounds of civilisational
linkages. To this end, PM Modi deliberately avoided any reference to brewing
tensions in the region but extended full support to “durable peace and regional
stability”. Supportive of the Gaza Peace Initiative, India, which is yet to
take a call on joining the Gaza Peace Board, attended the inaugural meeting as
an “Observer” ahead of PM Modi’s visit to Israel.
The delineation of
India-Israeli relations from the Palestinian cause was in vogue since the Modi
government’s first term. With separate and standalone visits, the Prime
Minister reoriented India’s policy back in 2017. Firming up this policy, PM
Modi is propping up the partnership on the strength of the centuries-old
civilisational connection and realism. Afflicted by grandstanding and moral
posturing, India faltered for decades. Shunning ambiguity and hesitation, India
is now openly courting Israel, whose timely help in crucial times remained
underappreciated and unacknowledged.
Exuding clarity and pragmatic
dynamism, countries elevated the ties to “A Strategic and Special Partnership
for Peace, Innovation and Prosperity through technology and innovation”, setting
the stage for a multi-dimensional partnership. With ‘Hugplomacy’ in full
display, abounding with friendly gestures and symbolisms, the leaders have restructured
the partnership that long deserved a high place.
Symbolism is
perceived as tokenism. However, protocol-defying gestures like a warm welcome
by the host Prime Minister at the tarmac and send off fortify ties and buffer
them from domestic push and pull factors. In recognition of the exceptional
contribution and leadership of PM Modi to strengthen bilateral ties, he was
conferred the Medal of the Knesset, making him the first ever recipient.
Among the listed 17
outcomes of the visit are MoUs on Cooperation in AI, education,
agricultural research, geophysical exploration, development of National
Maritime Heritage Complex (NMHC) at Lothal, fisheries and aquaculture,
commercial arbitration, financial cooperation and implementation of UPI. Countries
signed a Letter of Intent on the establishment of the Indo-Israel Cyber Centre
of Excellence in India and exchanged declaration of Intent in the field of
Horizon scanning.
India and Israel have been knowledge-driven economies
with complementary strengths. Israel
is a global powerhouse of technology and innovation. India serves is hub of
talent, manufacturing excellence and entrepreneurial energy. Through a
synergistic integration, both nations can prosper and succeed. For a futuristic
partnership defined by creativity, technology and talent, countries have
affirmed collaboration in AI, cybersecurity, semiconductors,
quantum computing, biotechnology, agriculture and water management, defence
platforms, and space exploration.
Elevating the Joint Commission on Science and Technology
to the Ministerial level, countries welcomed India–Israel Financial
Dialogue and an initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies led by the
NSAs (National Security Advisors). Having signed the Bilateral Investment
Treaty in September 2025, countries signed Terms of Reference (ToR) to commence
negotiations on the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) on February 24th.
Deepening the people-to-people connection, an additional 50,000 Indian workers would
join Israeli sectors within the next five years.
Notorious as a conflict-ridden region, the Middle East is
pivotal for global trade, energy security, maritime security and connectivity.
Indian interests are closely intertwined with the region in terms of remittances
and secured energy flows. Navigating the layered strategic alignments of the
region is absolutely essential for India’s economic growth.
The Middle East, which is the centrepiece of the India-Middle
East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), now lies at the intersection of India,
Israel, the UAE, the US (I2U2), and Mediterranean outreach. In his Knesset
address, PM Netanyahu outlined a geopolitical vision to involve India in the
“Iron Alliance” of like-minded countries. The envisioned broader “Hexagon
Alliance”, a potential axis against extremism, will emerge as an interconnected
corridor of trade, technology and maritime security. Putatively comprising
India, Israel, Cyprus, Greece, the UAE and Morocco, this informal security
network can be a potential alternative to China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Tipped to become the third-largest economy by 2030, India
is ramping up engagement with diverse partners and exploring a multi-layered
engagement with Middle East nations and beyond. Reimaging the ties through the
civilisational lens and anchoring in shared historical and ideological
affinities, PM Modi adeptly preserved Israeli ties from being consumed by
geopolitical and domestic pressures. India has emerged as a new anchor for Israel
in this geopolitical landscape. PM Modi’s visit has laid a framework for a
forward-looking partnership between two ancient civilisations and modern
nations- one that advances “national interests while contributing to global
stability and prosperity”.
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