TEL AVIV: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wasn’t doing a mere lip service when he said his country was keen to ‘make with India’. Tel Aviv, according to sources, has taken an unprecedented decision to assemble Israeli missiles in India.
Among several agreements clinched by the nations on Wednesday, the most critical one was to establish a joint company between the Israeli Aerospace Industry and an Indian company (name not disclosed) to build and maintain missiles in India. The deal is pegged to be worth around $1 billion, while another $2 billion deal, led by Israeli defence major Rafael Advanced Defense Systems is likely to follow. This effectively means India and Israel will build a joint military industry.
“Both Prime Ministers repeatedly stressed partnership. So, what may begin as assembling of Israeli technology could soon, probably, develop into a joint industry,” the sources added. Right now, most Israeli defence equipment are produced by factories in the US. Experts say Tel Aviv’s decision could be perceived by the Trump administration — which also has an ‘America First’ policy — as endangering its interest. Interestingly, earlier last month, US defence major Lockheed Martin also agreed to produce F16s in India, while Modi was on a visit to the US.
While the deal was not a secret, emphasis was laid on civil cooperation, not because the countries preferred talking economy over warfare, but to avoid ‘irritating the United States’. Senior sources say it was kept low-key to avoid annoying Washington with new competition. China is also a reason. “Israel maintains good relations with China — but the relations between China and India are problematic and it is better not to make big noise.”
However, the stress laid on non-military issues was not without a reason. Sources said India’s infrastructure need is as urgent as any military or security ones. “Here again, Israel can provide the technology that India needs.”
It was clearly evident that both Modi and Netanyahu were emphasizing their personal friendship to indicate that relations between their countries are not based on mere “interests” but are founded on shared values — much like between the US and Israel. “Partners of values and talents, and sisters in democracy.” This was how Netanyahu described the unique relations between the two nations when he hosted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for lunch at the King David hotel in Jerusalem. Modi, on his part, warmly thanked his host using Hebrew words to emphasise the friendship.
There were three consecutive meetings between the two sides on Wednesday, in the same hotel where Netanyahu hosted Modi for lunch. Sources in the Israeli PMO say one such meeting was within a small exclusive group — ‘almost tete-a-tete.’ Not much was said about this meet, but judging from the mood in Israeli corridors, there is good reason to believe that Netanyahu urged his Indian counterpart to withdraw from the anti-Israeli bloc in the UN.
The Palestinians are obviously concerned. A Palestinian writer in the London-based A-Rai al-Yom said Modi’s visit to Israel, by-passing Ramallah is already a defeat for Palestine. However, it had been decided earlier that the Palestinian issue would not be publicly discussed during Modi’s trip, perhaps indicating that the issue is still a matter of disagreement between the allies. To put it in perspective, despite the robust relations with America — Washington disagrees with Israel on the future of the West Bank.
“We also discussed the situation in West Asia and wider region. It is India’s hope that peace, dialogue and restraint will prevail,” Modi said later in the day regarding Israel-Palestinian peace process. The two leaders “reaffirmed their support for an early negotiated solution between the sides based on mutual recognition and security arrangements,” read a joint statement.