The Republic of India and the State of Israel enjoy an extensive economic, science and technological, military and strategic relationship. India recognized Israel as a nation in 1950. Various Hindu organizations, led by the Sangh Parivar, supported the creation of Israel. Hindu politician Veer Savarkar supported Israel when it was created and viewed its creation as "joyous" and condemned India's vote at the UN against Israel. Sushma Swaraj of BJP party said that Israel is a reliable partner, and that the current government acknowledged it. India established official relations with Israel in 1991, although informal ties had existed previously, involving such figures as Moshe Dayan. Israel provided India with crucial information during its multiple wars with Pakistan. 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. According to an Israeli Foreign Ministry report, India is one of the most pro-Israel nation. On a diplomatic level, both the countries have managed to maintain healthy relations. The history of the Jews in India reaches back to ancient times. Judaism was one of the first foreign religions to arrive in India in recorded history. Jews are a religious minority of India, but unlike many parts of the world, have historically lived in India without any instances of anti-Semitism from the local majority populace, the Hindus and Hindu kings Trade agreements India is the second-largest Asian economic partner of Israel. In 2010, bilateral trade, excluding military sales, stood at US $4.7 billion. In August 2012, India and Israel signed a $50 million academic research agreement. Currently, the two nations are negotiating an extensive bilateral free trade pact, focusing on areas such as information technology, biotechnology and agriculture. This includes manufacturing, satellite launch, agriculture and diamond industries. Israel's Minister for Science and Technology has expressed interest in collaborating with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Israel's TecSAR radar satellite was launched by India on 22 January 2008. In March 2009, India launched the RISAT-2 satellite which is based on the technology employed in Israel's TecSAR. According to a multi-national study conducted by an international market research company, India was found to be the most pro-Israeli nation. Military and strategic ties Israel provided India with crucial information during its multiple wars with Pakistan. India is the largest customer of Israeli military equipment and Israel is the second-largest military partner of India after Russia. Tourism More than 40,000 Israelis, mostly youth, after finishing their military service, visit India annually. Many Israelis visit the Himalayas, Old Manali, and Dharamshala. Even shops and public transport vehicles in the Kullu Valley, sport Hebrew signs. By 2010, India replaced Korea as the top source market for Israel from Asia with 41,000 tourist arrivals. Indian tourists were also the biggest spenders in Israel with an average of $1,364, outranking the average tourist expenditure in Israel of $1,091. In September 2011, Stas Misezhnikov, Tourism Minister of Israel and Union Tourism Minister of India decided to collaborate in the sphere of destination management and promotion, as well as manpower development. Also discussed were an exchange program for teachers and students, and the exchange of information on teaching modules. 40,000 Indians visited Israel in 2011, double the number of visitors in 2009. Interfaith relations The world's first Jewish-Hindu interfaith leadership summit, spearheaded by Hindu organizations in India and Jewish organizations in Israel, as well as the American Jewish Committee, was held in New Delhi on February 2007. In August 2007, a delegation of the All India Organization of Imams and Mosques led by Maulana Jamil Ilyas also visited Israel. The chief Rabbi of Israel, Yona Metzger, was actively involved in the dialogue, together with Swami Dayanand Sarasvati. They stated that "The Jewish and Hindu communities are committed to the ancient traditions of Judaism and Hindu dharma respectively, and have both, in their own ways, gone through the painful experiences of persecution, oppression and destruction." Mertzger quoted: "For thousands of years we have marched on parallel causes and have now built bridges of cooperation between the two religions. Jews have lived in India for over 2000 years and have never been discriminated against. This is something unparalleled in human history". Conclusion Thus the friendship between India and Israel is growing every year to benefit of the people of both countries in a variety of ways.

• published: 29 Jun 2014
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