Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pulled out all the stops and rolled out the red carpet everywhere that Prime Minister Narendra Modi went during his three-day trip to Israel. Netanyahu and almost the entire Israeli cabinet lined up on the tarmac to receive Modi. And if that wasn’t enough to emphasise the importance of the visit, Netanyahu was by his side all the way, whether it was at a 5,000-strong rally of Indian-origin Israelis or a visit to a water desalination plant. As one TV channel noted, only the US president and the Pope have received similar treatment. Even Israel’s president, Reuven Rivlin, broke with precedent and went all the way to his gate to greet Modi.
For the Israelis, Modi’s visit is, unquestionably, a significant diplomatic breakthrough. Tel Aviv has come a long way from the time when it was an outcast in the global polity. India opened diplomatic relations with Israel in 1992, around the same time as China. India’s change of heart was dictated by global realities at the time. But for the last 25 years, India has always insisted on keeping its ties low-key. Modi is the first prime minister to visit the tiny country which came into being soon after India’s Independence. Modi also pointedly skipped a visit to the Palestinians, indicating that India was finally de-hyphenating the relationship. For India, the benefits of the trip are less immediate but expected to bear fruit in coming years. There were great atmospherics and optics. But the seven deals signed on subjects from water desalination to industrial R&D suggest that India mainly hopes to leverage Israel’s skills in science and technology. Bilateral trade — excluding defence — between India and Israel hovers around $5 billion and that is mostly in the diamond trade. Indian companies like Sun Pharma and ATG, a specialty tyre-maker, have big interests in Israel. But perhaps unsurprisingly, the Chinese are streets ahead of us in bilateral trade and their companies are investing heavily in Israel’s cutting-edge start-ups. Netanyahu delighted the Indian side by saying that “Israel and India are a match made in heaven.” But it didn’t take long to turn up the fact that he had said exactly the same thing to Chinese President Xi Jinping during his state visit to Israel. However, when it comes to defence, India is already Israel’s biggest buyer. In April, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) signed a $2-billion deal to supply missile systems to the Indian navy and army and in May it clinched another $630-million agreement to sell air defence systems.
Even as defence ties deepen with Israel, India has to tread carefully with the Arab States, on whom it is still dependent for a bulk of its energy requirements, and which are home to millions of Indian expatriates. With the political turmoil roiling the region showing no signs of abating and ancient enmities flaring up again, India has its task cut out to maintain its special relationship with Israel.