Stressing that Indo-Israel ties are based on mutual "appreciation and meaningful collaboration", Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has said he will be visiting India in the first week of April to mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
The visit also aims to expand the cooperation between the two countries in the areas of innovation and technology, security and cyber, and agriculture and climate change.
"Prime Minister Naftali Bennett will pay his first official visit to India on Saturday, 2 April 2022, at the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi," the Israeli PM's Foreign Media Adviser said in a statement.
The two leaders had first met on the sidelines of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow last October when PM Modi had invited PM Bennett to pay an official visit to India, the statement said.
"This visit will reaffirm the important connection between the countries and the leaders, and will mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of relations between Israel and India," it added.
Informed sources told PTI that it will be a four-day visit from April 2-April 5.
"The purpose of the visit is to advance and strengthen the strategic alliance between the countries, and to expand bilateral ties. In addition, the leaders will discuss the strengthening of cooperation in a variety of areas, including innovation, economy, research and development, agriculture and more", the media adviser said.
Bennett will be meeting his Indian counterpart, senior government officials and also the local Jewish community during his visit.
The full schedule of the visit and additional details will be issued separately, the statement said.
"I am delighted to pay my first official visit to India at the invitation of my friend, Prime Minister Modi, and together we will continue leading the way for our countries' relations," Bennett was quoted as saying in the press statement.
"Modi restarted relations between India and Israel, and this is of historic importance. The relations between our two unique cultures the Indian culture and the Jewish culture are deep, and they rely on deep appreciation and meaningful collaborations," he said.
"There are many things we can learn from the Indians, and this is what we strive to do. Together we will expand our cooperation to other areas, from innovation and technology, security and cyber, to agriculture and climate change," the Israeli Prime Minister emphasised.
Though New Delhi recognized Israel in 1950, ties were long frosty between the two nations, owing largely to India’s large Muslim population and its leadership role in the Cold War-era Non-Aligned Movement.
Full diplomatic relations were established in 1992.
Under the leadership of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, ties blossomed between India and Israel, culminating in the late prime minister Ariel Sharon’s 2003 visit to the country, the first by an Israeli premier.
Defence, agriculture, and trade, among others, have been the key pillars of the relationship between the two countries.
Indian forces have participated in the multilateral airforce exercise ‘Blue Flag 2021’ held in October in Israel.
During a trip to Israel last year, where he extended the invitation to Bennett to visit, Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar lauded the business relationship between his country and Israel, saying at a meeting with CEOs and government officials that India regards Israel “in many ways as perhaps our most trusted and innovative partner.”
Both countries have restarted negotiations for the free trade agreement, which is expected to conclude by mid-2022. India is Israel's third-largest trading partner in Asia and the seventh-largest globally.
The visit comes amid a number of high-level visits to New Delhi as Covid crisis abates.
The Japanese Prime Minister Fumio is currently in Delhi, and a number of ministers from other countries, including Austria, Oman, Greece, the UK, and Mexico, will also land in Delhi.
India and China are discussing to facilitate the visit of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
(with inputs from PTI)
