Prime Minister Narendra Modi is among the few leaders who have received the highest civilian awards from, both, Israel and Palestine. This is indicative of the balanced and mature approach adopted by India regarding these two countries. It is by no means an easy task because national interest has to be kept foremost in mind before involvement in the politics of any particular region.
Popular narratives in India these days, even by politicians who should know better, are quite ill-informed. When addressing the conflict in Gaza, they do not seem to be clear whether they support Hamas or the Palestinian people. In their eagerness to condemn Israel’s actions in Gaza, they not only overlook the Hamas ideology but even seem to be supporting its actions. In its diplomatic outreach, India needs to make very subtle distinctions, which under PM Modi, it has done quite effectively.
It must remembered that Israel has stood by India in the common struggle against terrorism of all kinds. It has made available all its resources, which include high-tech armaments, as well as intelligence inputs – part of a multi-faceted strategic relationship. There needs to be proper appreciation of such an all-weather friend.
And it is not just defence technology, important as it is, that determines the nature of India-Israel relations. Cooperation in agriculture, water management, waste treatment and desalination technologies, artificial intelligence, quantum technologies and cybersecurity is also expected to feature prominently in the future.
India’s engagement with Israel, it must be remembered, is part of a larger outreach towards the entire West Asian region, which includes the Gulf nations, Iran, even those in the Mediterranean. And there is advantage for Israel, also, as it not only has a strong trade partner, but is not so isolated as its actions in the past couple of years would have made it. In essence, India has de-hyphenated its relations with Israel and Palestine.
The atmosphere witnessed in Israel’s Knesset during PM Modi’s address also reflects the value given to relations with India. There was deep appreciation that India values its relationship despite the strong external and internal pressures to take the populist line. This shows that whatever influence it has can be exercised for the cause of peace and justice as a genuine friend. There is no need for such aspects to become public knowledge. Modi also rightly acknowledged that there are civilisational bonds which have existed over the millennia that also play a role in what happens today.
