H E Mr Naor Gilon, Ambassador of Israel at AIMA’s 64th LeaderSpeak Session
India and Israel have maintained a very extensive and comprehensive economic, military, and political relationship, but there’s always scope for more, said H E Mr Naor Gilon, Ambassador of Israel at AIMA’s 64th LeaderSpeak Session.
[Excerpts below…]
India and Israel have maintained a very extensive and comprehensive economic, military, and political relationship. However, there’s always scope for more for the bilateral relations between India and Israel to be further expanded and deep-rooted.
The India-Israel bilateral relationship is multifaceted, encompassing defense, agriculture, technology, and more. Both countries continue to explore opportunities for collaboration and further strengthening their ties.
Our relations are far more advanced than you would expect after 31 years of full diplomatic relations. Our relationship is also emotional and is only getting deeper and deeper. It is the historical connection and of course the 80,000 strong diasporas in Israel.
When the Jews arrived in India, they also brought with them the culture. However, they also adopted the culture of India and excelled in their professions and businesses.
The bilateral relationship has now evolved from being trusted to strategic. The grouping of I2U2 (India, Israel, the UAE, and the US) aims to cooperate on joint investments and new initiatives in water, energy, transportation, space, health, and food security, and the bilateral relation is only an extension of the I2U2 itself.
While Israel is proficient in technology, India’s strength lies in manufacturing and if the two are combined, they will be a force to reckon with. Besides that, new aspects of relations are also being strengthened between the two countries. The Adani Group has also acquired the strategic Israeli port of Haifa, besides having future plans of opening an AI Lab in Tel Aviv.
Talking about cyber security, after embarking on a shared mission to enhance their bilateral strategic cyber partnership, the partnership is steadily deepening through private sector collaboration.
I’m also into people-to-people connections more than business to business connection. And besides initiating centres that provide a suitable platform for the transfer of technology to farmers, I also encourage professionals’ group visits to Israel for facilitating collaborations, as both countries have emerged as major centres for tech start-ups.
Lastly, let me say that India-Israel bilateral relations have evolved significantly since the establishment of diplomatic ties in 1992. Over the years, both countries have developed a strong and multifaceted relationship characterised by cooperation in various sectors.
Watch the full Session- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xy27zB1KrQM&t=1053s
