HYDERABAD: Daniel Carmon, Israeli Ambassador to India, has called upon both India and Israel to work together to achieve common goals.
“There is a certain richness and diversity to Indo-Israel relationship. We must come together and work towards strengthening defence, homeland security and education, among others,” said Carmon at a roundtable conference organised by the Indo-Israel Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IICCI), Centre for Human Security Studies (CHSS) and ESF Labs Ltd.
“As nations we must be more self-reliant and have to develop defence to protect our people. In this regard, both countries can help each other,” Carmon remarked during the discussion on the theme ‘Indo-Israel Relations: Tapping New Frontiers’.
The Ambassador also acknowledged Hyderabad’s role in strengthening Indo-Israeli relations and was all praise for the city’s way of functioning. “My visit to this city has been immensely fruitful. The experience has taught me many things and has further instilled my confidence in the Indo-Israel relationship which is moving in the right direction,” he said.
Former Union Home Secretary K Padmanabhaiah was equally appreciative of the bilateral ties between both the countries. “Israel has the second largest number of startup companies in the world after the US. India is ranked high in the IT industry, agriculture and other sectors. It will be mutually beneficial if they combine to work,” he said.
As Tuesday marked 22 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries, both parties agreed that they face several challenges when it comes to defence and homeland security. “Defence is a concern for both nations. We must look at strengthening bilateral ties and exchanging intel and counter-attacking terrorist wings,” said Swaranjit Sen, former DGP of Andhra Pradesh.
Other speakers included Mohan Kanda, former Chief Secretary, Andhra Pradesh, MV Krishna Rao, former DG, Sashtra Seema Bal, Kem Uday Sagar, president, IICCI and K Ramesh Babu, founder-director, CHSS Hyderabad, among others.