India and Israel established full diplomatic relations in 1992 and since then the bilateral relationship

between the two countries has blossomed at the economic, military, agricultural and political levels.

Both countries see themselves as isolated democracies threatened by their neighbours that train,

finance and encourage terrorism, therefore both countries also view their cooperative relationship as

a strategic imperative.

Relations between Jerusalem and New Delhi were not always warm. Although both countries

gained their independence from the United Kingdom within months of each other, they found

themselves headed in pointedly different directions for nearly four decades.

First Period

The Congress party establishment continued to insist on a national consensus in foreign policy -

support for the Palestinians and opposition to Israel were part of the progressive orientation of the

ruling Congress party. India did not vote for the Partitioning of Palestine plan of 1947 and voted

against Israel's admission to the United Nations in 1949, however on September 17, 1950, India

officially recognized the State of Israel.

Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru stated,

"we would have [recognized Israel] long ago, because Israel is a fact. We refrained

because of our desire not to offend the sentiments of our friends in the Arab countries."

During these decades Indias nonaligned policy dictated its stance towards Israel. India continued to

look with suspicion on Israels relations with its neighbours like China and Sri Lanka. Chinas

acquisition of Israeli hi-tech military equipment was of strategic concern to India and it kept a close

eye on the warming Chinese-Israeli relations since the 1980s.

Equally important were considerations of domestic Muslim opinion and the importance of the Arab

factor in Indias relations with West Asia.

Yet these were not entirely fallow years in terms of contact between India and Israel. India

purchased a quantity of arms and ammunition from Israel both after the Sino-Indian War of 1962

and the India-Pakistan Wars of 1965 and 1971. India found that Israel was ready to sell the needed

weapons which were otherwise unavailable due to embargos by UK, US and France.

In addition, a relationship between Indias security agency, Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) and

the Israeli Mossad has existed since the 1960s.

Even on the non-defence and security front also the situation was not entirely negative. There were

contacts to understand Israeli techniques of dry land farming and drip irrigation (which reached

Israel from Kerala through Indian Jewish immigrants). India also initiated a few direct and indirect

contacts with Israel mainly in the field of technology in the late 1980s.

The Second Period (1992-2011)

With the change in the international balance of power after the 1991 Gulf War and the disintegration

of the Soviet Union, India and Israel finally found the opportunity to normalize their relations.

there were two domestic and one external cause which led to this change.

-The backing which Pakistan received in the OIC(Organisation of Islamic Conference) from Saudi

Arabia and the reluctance of other member-states, all maintaining good relation with India, to

express their reservations on OICs anti-India tirades was a disappointment for India.

The domestic factors were greatly assisted by the major changes in the international political order

to change Indias thinking on Israel.

The end of the cold war and other events during that time compelled India to take a renewed look at

the region.

After decades of non-aligned and pro-Arab policy, India formally established relations with Israel in

January 1992 and ties between the two nations have flourished since, primarily due to common

strategic interests and security threats. India opened its Embassy in Tel Aviv in May 1992. In

justifying the opening of relations India gave a number of reasons:

Israels criticality to what happens in West Asia and the Gulf, which is a part of Indias

extended neighbourhood impacting its strategic space, energy supplies and 6 million Indians

living in the area;

Sophisticated defence equipment, technologies and systems from Israel given the drying up

and unreliability of ex-Soviet sources;

potential of co-operation in defence modernisation and production;

Israels knowledge and experience in countering terrorism;

Israels border management and counter terrorism techniques could help India in getting

over its major weaknesses in internal security management;

Absence of any quid pro quo from the Arab states;

Israels prowess in agriculture and its technologies;

This period was extremely productive politically, militarily and economically for the bilateral

relationship.

Factors that led to difference between India and Israel

India as a leader in the Non-Aligned Movement, maintained close relations to the Arab

world and the Soviet Union; Israel, linked its future to close ties with the United States and

Western Europe, immediate recognition of Israel would have hindered the Indo-NAM Policy

India's large Muslim population was another major obstacle to building a relationship with

Israel, as India feared that close relations with the Jewish State might somehow radicalize its

Muslim citizens - numbering more than 100 million - and hurt its relations with the Arab

world.

In 2000, Jaswant Singh became the first Indian Foreign Minister to visit Israel.[26] Following the

visit, the two countries set up a joint anti-terror commission. The foreign ministers of the two

countries said intensified co-operation would range from counter-terrorism to information

technology.[27][28]

In 2003, Ariel Sharon was the first Israeli Prime Minister to visit India. 2014 In the same year

former Israeli President Shimon Peres visited India

Military and strategic ties

The rise of Islamic extremist terrorism in both nations has generated a strong strategic alliance

between the two.

It was revealed that the Indian external intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) had

clandestine links with the Mossad (the Israeli Intelligence Agency)

In 1997, Israel's President Ezer Weizman became the first head of the Jewish state to visit India.

Weizman negotiated the first weapons deal between the two nations, involving the purchase of

Barak 1 vertically-launched surface-to-air (SAM) missiles from Israel. The purchase of the Barak-

1 missiles from Israel by India was a tactical necessity since Pakistan had purchased Lockheed P-3

Orion maritime surveillance aircraft anti-ship missiles from the United States.

Israel was one of the selected few nations, a group that also included France and Russia, that did not

condemn India's 1998 Pokhran-II nuclear tests.

In naval terms, Israel sees great strategic value in an alliance with the Indian Navy, given India's

dominance of South Asian waters. Due to the great importance of maritime trade to the Israeli

economy it thus sees the potential of establishing a logistical infrastructure in the Indian Ocean with

the help of the Indian Navy. In 2000, Israeli submarines conducted test launches of cruise missiles

capable of carrying nuclear warheads in the waters of the Indian Ocean, off the Sri Lankan coast.

In 1996, India purchased 32 IAI Searcher unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), Electronic Support

Measure sensors and an Air Combat Manoeuvering Instrumentation simulator system from Israel.

[59] including the upgrading of the IAF's Russian-made MiG-21

India purchased 50 Israeli drones for $220 million in 2005.[63]

Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd signed a US$2.5 billion deal with India in 2007 to develop an anti-

aircraft system and missiles for the country, in the biggest defence contract in the history of Israel at

the time.

IAI is developing the Barak 8 missile for the Indian Navy and Indian Air Force which is capable of

protecting sea vessels and ground facilities from aircraft and cruise missiles. The missile has a range

of over 70 kilometres. The missile will replace the current obsolete Russian system used by India.

[65]

Trade agreements

Bilateral trade between India and Israel grew from $200 million in 1992 to $4.39 billion in 2013.[6]

As of 2013, India is Israel's tenth-largest trade partner and import source, and seventh-largest export

source. India's major exports to Israel include precious stones and metals, base metals and

machinery, minerals, plastics, chemical products, textile products, and agricultural products.[6]

Israel's major exports to India include precious stones and metals, base metals and machinery,

minerals, transport equipment, and chemical products.[6]In 2007, Israel proposed starting

negotiations on a free trade agreement with India, and in 2010, then Indian Prime Minister

Manmohan Singh accepted that proposal.[

The agreement is set to focus on many key economic sectors, including information technology,

biotechnology, water management, pharmaceuticals, and agriculture.

Agreements signed between the two countries:

Since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1992, several economic agreements

were signed between Israel and India including the following:

Agreement for cooperation in agriculture (1993)

Agreement for Promotion and Protection of Investments (Jan 1996)

Avoidance of Double Taxation and for the Prevention of Fiscal evasion with respect to

taxes on Income and on Capital (Jan 1996)

Bilateral Agreement regarding Mutual Assistance and Cooperation in Customs Matters

(1996)

Agreement on Cooperation in Peace Uses of Outer Space (2002)

Agreement for Cooperation in the field of Protection of the Environment (2003)

MOU on India-Israel Research and Development Fund Initiative (2005)Space collaboration

A Memorandum of Understanding, signed by ISRO and Israel's space agency, provides for

cooperation in multiple areas of space science and technology[93]

Israel's TecSAR radar satellite was launched by India on 22 January 2008.[94][95] The Indian

PSLV launch-vehicle was chosen instead of its own home grown Shavit rocket.[96] This was due to

both the cheap cost of the PSLV ($15 million compared to the Shavit at $20 million) and satellite

orbital & payload parameters.[97] Tecsar is an Israeli spy satellite, primarily meant to monitor Iran's

military activities.[98]

In March 2009, India launched the RISAT-2 satellite which is based on the technology employed in

Israel's TecSAR. A spokesman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) said that RISAT-2

is an Indian satellite built with assistance from Israel.[99] The decision to purchase the satellite was

taken in the wake of the 2008 Mumbai attacks.[100] The 300 kilogram RISAT-2 was successfully

launched by India's PSLV rocket in April 2009.[101]

On 21 January 2008 India successfully launched an Israeli spy satellite into orbit from Sriharikota

space station in southern India.

Defence

The ballast for Indo-Israeli bilateral ties is provided by their defence cooperation.