From defence and counter-terrorism to water harvesting and agriculture, the great number of avenues for India-Israel cooperation make it possible for the ties to overcome the faultlines and reach great heights. Comment.

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From defence and counter-terrorism to water harvesting and agriculture, the great number of avenues for India-Israel cooperation make it possible for the ties to overcome the faultlines and reach great heights. Comment.
Approach:
  • Introduce briefly with India-Israel ties
  • Discuss the major avenues of cooperation between these two countries
  • Highlight some main faultlines in the relationship
  • Conclude with a positive view towards future relations
Model Answer :
The convergence of mutual bilateral interests between India and Israel is more conspicuous than ever before and this can be seen in growing cooperation on multiple fronts.
Defence deals:
  • Israel is set to topple the US as the chief exporter of arms and ammunitions to India with Barak missiles, surveillance drones and other big league defence deals.
  • In line with “Make in India” campaign, Israel has agreed to build a maintenance plant in India for the jointly-developed Barak 8 system.
National security and counter-terrorism:
  • India and Israel are boosting up the counter-terrorism cooperation and sharing real-time intel on issues crucial to national security. These ties are being taken forward based on common threats from global terrorism.
Water and agriculture:
  • Given Israel’s novel and efficient water technologies, there is ongoing cooperation between the two countries.
  • Several Desalination Plants (Nemelli, Chennai, and Jamnagar) were built by Israeli companies in India. Government of Rajasthan and Mekorot (Israel’s national water company) signed a MOU for joint development of waste water reuse capabilities and infrastructure facilities for high tech agriculture in Rajasthan.
  • India and Israel signed a comprehensive agreement for cooperation in agriculture in 2006.
  • Israeli drip irrigation technologies and products are now widely used in India. Israeli companies and experts are providing expertise to manage and improve dairy farming in India.
However, there are some potential fault-lines in the India-Israel relationship, including:
  • Israel’s keenness to forge stronger ties with India’s regional rival, China.
  • India’s relationships with the Middle Eastern countries including Iran, Israel’s arch enemy.
  • India continues to have a soft-spot for Palestine which does not go well with Israel. India and Israel will continue to ‘agree to disagree’ as regards India’s voting pattern in the UN on Palestine-related issues for the foreseeable future.
Conclusion:
India is de-hyphenating Israel from Palestine and is prepared to deal with the two separately and independently. As a result, the relationship between these two countries is gaining momentum day by day. Future prospects seemed so bright that the Prime Minister of Israel has proclaimed that the “sky is not the limit,” while referring to the future of India-Israel relations.

Subjects : Current Affairs