Posted on 11/19/2014 6:14:31 AM PST by sukhoi-30mki
At the U.N. General Assembly in New York last September, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu set aside time for a critical meeting. But it wasn't President Barack Obama he was keen to see. It was Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Since Modi came to power in May, ties between Israel and India have been in overdrive, with the two signing a series of defence and technology deals that have underscored their burgeoning commercial and political relationship.
The same month as the UN meeting, Modi's cabinet cleared a long-delayed purchase of Israeli missiles for its navy. In October, India closed a $520 million deal to buy Israeli anti-tank missiles. And last week, a jointly developed aerial defence system passed a major trial, which India called a "milestone".
"There is great momentum in cooperation, on both the defence and economic sides," Naftali Bennett, Israel's economy minister and a member of Netanyahu's inner cabinet, told Reuters.
India is now the largest buyer of Israeli military equipment, while Israel is India's largest customer after Russia. In the first nine months of 2014, bilateral trade reached $3.4 billion, on target for a record this year.
While that may not be vast in global terms, it has helped push Asia to the brink of overtaking the United States as Israel's largest export market after the European Union.
India is steadily catching up with China as it buys more Israeli defence and cyber-security technology, an area where China is limited since the United States frowns on Israel dealing too freely with Beijing in defence matters.
The roots of the Israel relationship go back to 2006, when Modi was chief minister of Gujarat and visited the region to explore new ideas in irrigation, an area of Israeli expertise.
(Excerpt) Read more at in.reuters.com ...
When I was in Israel in June I was impressed with the very large number of Indian tourists visiting the country. Also, Israel is forging strong ties with China. Let the Euros play their BDS game, Israel is making friends elsewhere.
More Here
Pacific Power Play
India and Australia Draw Closer Together
http://www.the-american-interest.com/2014/11/17/india-and-australia-draw-closer-together/
Smart move on both ends. Thanks sukhoi-30mki.
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