Tel Aviv: Trade, connectivity and bolstering defence relations are set to take centre stage as India and Israel explore ways to elevate their economic and strategic partnership, with fresh momentum around the proposed India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) during PM Modi’ visit to Israel which gets underway on February 25, Wednesday. Israel is considered a pivotal link in the ambitious corridor, which aims to connect India to Europe through the Middle East via integrated shipping and rail networks. The discussions come amid a broader push to strengthen bilateral trade and move closer to finalising a long-pending Free Trade Agreement(FTA) between the two countries. In an interview to Doordshan India, Indian Ambassador to Israel J P Singh highlighted the expectation of the upcoming engagement in the domain of trade and connectivity.
Responding to a question on expectations surrounding IMEC and broader economic cooperation, Singh said, “I think this is one area where there will be discussion during this visit, how to improve trade and commerce. And when we say trade and commerce, last year our Commerce and Industry Minister, Piyush Goyal, also visited Israel. During that visit, he came along with a very big delegation, around 70-member business delegation, CEO and business forum meetings took place”. Officials also confirmed that negotiators are currently in New Delhi working to advance the FTA framework. The agreement, once concluded, is expected to lower trade barriers, enhance market access and promote investment flows across sectors including technology, agriculture, defense and services.
The anticipated meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, is expected to provide political direction to the negotiations. Ambassador Singh expressed optimism about tangible outcomes from the high-level engagement. “And I think during this visit, both the Prime Ministers are going to set a roadmap, a target, how to sign Free Trade Agreement at the earliest possible”, the Ambassador further added. Beyond the FTA, the IMEC initiative is seen as a transformative connectivity project that could reshape regional supply chains. With Israel positioned as a strategic transit and logistics hub, progress on the corridor could significantly enhance trade efficiency between India and European markets.
Defence and security cooperation: Key pillar in bilateral discussions
Defence and security cooperation will be another key focus during Prime Minister Narendra Modi visit to Israel, India’s Ambassador to Israel JP Singh said, underlining the strategic depth of bilateral ties. “This is a very historic visit. The first time he came to Israel was in 2017 and that time he laid down the foundation of our relationship. And now we have reached the stage where we need to take it forward and start a new phase of our strategic relationship”, Singh said. “In this visit, you know, we have a strategic partnership. Defence and security are like a cornerstone of this partnership”.
Referring to recent developments, Singh noted, “In defence last year, we signed a memorandum of understanding in defence cooperation. And there is already cooperation going on”. He highlighted the role of India’s flagship ‘Make in India’ programme in boosting joint production”. Under the Make in India programme, many Israeli companies are participating and the countries can benefit from this cooperation”, he said. Singh also pointed to the complementary strengths of both nations. “The best thing about India and Israel is that we don’t compete with each other, we complement each other. And we complement in our core strengths”, he said, citing Israel’s expertise in science, innovation and critical technologies and India’s large pool of skilled manpower and scalable ecosystem.
Israel-India partnership critical to counter terrorism: Israel Envoy to India
Earlier on February 23, Israeli Ambassador to India, Reuven Azar, stated that defence and artificial intelligence(AI) will be the primary focus between India and Israel during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s two-day visit to Israel starting February 25. Azar, in a conversation with ANI, noted that PM Modi shares a special relationship with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu. “Well, we are thrilled to have Prime Minister Narendra Modi after nine years in Israel. He is very loved in Israel. He has a very special relationship with Prime Minister Netanyahu and we’ve been working in the last year, aligning up ministers coming to India to develop new areas of cooperation, sign new agreements and we have gathered, we accumulated a number of agreements that we’re going to sign during this visit”, he said.
Azar said that Israel and India will co-produce and also co-develop new means that are needed to face the challenges of terrorism. “First and foremost, in the security field, we want to expand and enhance security, defence industrial cooperation, especially introducing new technologies and more sensitive technologies into the mix to not only sell, but also co-produce and also co-develop new means that are needed to face the challenges that we have in counterterrorism and other fields”, he said. Azar further said that India and Israel are going to sign an FTA in the coming months.
When asked about the mission Sudarshan Chakra, a system which is somewhat like the Iron Dome system, of Israel, Azar said that missile defence and the usage of AI in missiles are something the leaders will touch upon. “Well, we usually do not elaborate on the specifics of the Industrial Defence Corporation. But I can tell you that, indeed, missile defence is one field that we’re going to deal with. The combination of AI with drones is another field that we’re going to deal with in the future. There are many things that are going to happen as a result of the signing of this agreement. And this is going to really become a special strategic relation in which we’re going to do things that are important for both countries and are more sensitive than the things we’ve been doing before”, he said.
(With Inputs from ANI)
