India pursues a policy of zero tolerance towards terrorism. Israel too follows a zero tolerance towards the menace. “Our two nations face a particular challenge from terrorism. It is essential that we work towards ensuring a global approach of zero-tolerance towards terrorism, in all its forms and manifestations,” External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar said in his opening remarks during Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar’s just concluded visit to New Delhi.
In fact, in an increasingly troubled world, India-Israel relations stand out for two distinct reasons: First, high degree of trust, and second, a proven record of reliability. “India and Israel have a strategic partnership and particularly in our case, that term has a real meaning. We have stood together in testing times. And we have created a relationship with a high degree of trust and of reliability,” Dr S Jaishankar said.
When India launched Operation Sindoor in May to target terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, Israel promptly expressed strong support for India’s right to defend itself against terrorism.
Common Stance on Terrorism
India, a victim of Pakistan-sponsored terrorism, has a strategy against the menace which involves diplomatic offensive to expose and isolate terrorist groups, their leaders and countries that employ terrorism as part of their state policy.
After the September 19, 2016, terrorist attack on an Indian Army camp in Uri in Jammu and Kashmir, India shifted its stance against cross-border terrorism.
Instead of just employing diplomatic tools to expose and isolate terrorist groups and their backers, India undertook military-led ‘hot pursuit’ to punish and induce fear among terrorists and their supporters.
“Our two nations face a particular challenge from terrorism. It is essential that we work towards ensuring a global approach of zero-tolerance towards terrorism, in all its forms and manifestations,” says External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar
India carried out surgical strikes against terrorist camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir by crossing the Line of Control in 2016. India conducted airstrikes on Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) launch pads in Pakistan’s Balakot region after 40 CRPF personnel were killed in a suicide bombing in Pulwama in Jammu and Kashmir on February 14, 2019.
But then, it was a more powerful and devastating strike against Pakistan-based terrorists and their backers after the Pahalgam incident in which 26 people were killed by terrorists belonging to The Resistance Force (TRF) on April 22.
India employed a multi-dimensional approach which included a combination of military and non-military means to neutralise terrorist threats and deter Pakistani aggression. Israel supported India’s military action against Pakistan and terrorists backed by it.
For Israel, as per its statement in the UN General Assembly in 2017, the fight against terrorism is an unending fight. It further says that in its unending fight against terrorism, it remains committed to the rule of law and the value of life.
Overall, zero tolerance has been the mainstay of Israel’s counter-terrorism strategy. Its stand is that no cause or grievance can justify terrorism. However, its counter-terrorism policies have faced international criticism, primarily from UN bodies, human rights organisations, and foreign governments.
For instance, France, which shares both hot and cold relations with Israel since the latter’s creation in 1948, condemned the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023, on Israel but criticised its continuation of the war in Gaza. France along with Belgium, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, and Andorra formally recognised a Palestinian state at the 80th session of the UN General Assembly. While in September, the UK, Canada, and Australia also announced formal recognition of the Palestinian state.
Yet all this has had little impact on India-Israel relations, as evident from the way both countries decided to intensify their cooperation on counter-terrorism front during Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar’s visit last week.
India employed a multi-dimensional approach, which included a combination of military and non-military means to neutralise terrorist threats and deter Pakistani aggression. Israel supported India’s military action against Pakistan and terrorists backed by it
Turning Point in India-Israel Relations
A close US ally, Israel has on several occasions and sometimes at the cost of risking the ire of the United States, supported India during its testing times. It provided critical military support to India during wars with Pakistan in 1965 and 1971, but a turning point in its relations with India really came in 1999 when India was responding to Pakistani troops’ intrusion in the Kargil-Drass sector in Jammu and Kashmir.
The Indian armed forces, battling with outdated technical equipment and military hardware, were finding it difficult to locate and attack Pakistani soldiers hiding in the rugged mountainous terrain of Kargil.
At the time, India was facing technological, economic and arms sanctions imposed by the US and several other countries for its nuclear tests on May 11 and 13 in 1998. Amid these testing circumstances, Israel stood out as the only country to openly support India. It provided India with mortars and ammunition and also laser-guided missiles for IAF fighter jets.
Writing in his book Evolution of India’s Israel Policy, Nicolas Blarel said that Israel faced pressure from the US and other international community members to delay the shipment of defence equipment to India. But Israel remained steadfast in its commitment to help India in its need and delivered the much-needed weapons on time.
India-Israel Trade and Investment
Though diamond, petroleum products and chemicals dominate trade between India and Israel, in recent years, there has been an increase in trade in areas such as electronic machinery and high-tech products, communications systems, and medical equipment.
Israel provided critical military support to India during wars with Pakistan in 1965 and 1971, but a turning point in its relations with India really came in 1999 when India was responding to Pakistani troops’ intrusion in the Kargil-Drass sector in Jammu and Kashmir
In 2023-24, the bilateral trade (excluding defence) between the two countries stood at $6.53 billion. However, in 2024-25, India-Israel bilateral trade witnessed a decline as it was just $3.75 billion. Regional security and trade route disruptions were cited as the key reasons for this decline in 2024-25.
In terms of investment, both India and Israel have taken significant efforts to increase investment in each other. India’s investment in Israel from April 2000 to April 2025 was $443 million. Indian companies such as TCS, Sun Pharma, State Bank of India, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, Wipro, Lohia Group, Adani Group have their presence in Israel.
Similarly, Israel has made significant investment in India. Between April 2000 and March 2024, Israel’s FDI in India stood at $334.2 million. There are over 300 investments from Israel in India mainly in the high-tech domain, agriculture, and water.
These investments are varied in nature – manufacturing plants; R&D centres; subsidiaries, joint ventures, and technology partnerships. There is a growing preference for Israeli companies in sectors such as renewable energy, water technologies, homeland security, aerospace, defence, health, and real estate in addition to traditional areas such as agriculture, cyber, chemicals, etc.
Diamond, petroleum products and chemicals dominated trade between India and Israel, but in recent years, trade increased in electronic machinery and high-tech products, communication systems, and medical equipment. In 2023-24, the bilateral trade (excluding defence) between the two stood at $6.53 billion
India-Israel Defence Ties
Between 2015 and 2024, arms and ammunition trade between India and Israel saw 33-fold increase. In fact, in the last 10 years, India imported $2.9 billion in military equipment from Israel, according to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
These imports included combat drones, missiles, radars, and surveillance systems. If the Israeli daily, Haaretz’s December 2022 report is to be believed, Israeli defence exports to India are estimated at $1.5 to $2 billion per year.
On November 5, a major thrust was imparted to India-Israel defence engagement when the two countries signed an MoU which would deepen their existing strong ties. The MoU include strategic dialogues of mutual interest, training, defence industrial cooperation, and capabilities including science and technology, research and development, and technology innovation, artificial intelligence, and cyber security cooperation. It was signed during the 17th meeting of the Joint Working Group (JWG) on defence cooperation.
“The MoU will enable the sharing of advanced technology and would promote co-development and co-production,” the Ministry of Defence said in a statement.
Cultural and People-to-People Ties
Altogether, there are around 26,000 Indian citizens in Israel who are engaged in various fields, including agriculture, IT, diamond trade, construction. There are nearly 900 Indian students studying in Israel, mainly at the doctoral and post-doctoral levels. Several courses related to India are taught at Israeli universities.
Between 2015 and 2024, arms and ammunition trade between India and Israel saw 33-fold increase. In the last 10 years, India imported $2.9 billion worth of military equipment from Israel. These imports included combat drones, missiles, radars, and surveillance systems
Tourism and people-to-people contacts have been significantly boosted with the commencement of the Air India flights in March 2018 between New Delhi and Tel Aviv, with five flights per week. There are approximately 85,000 Jews of Indian origin in Israel who are Israeli passport holders. The main waves of immigration into Israel from India took place in the 1950s and the 1960s.
The majority are from Maharashtra (Bene Israelis), and relatively smaller numbers are from Kerala (Cochini Jews) and Kolkata (Baghdadi Jews). In recent years, some Indian Jews from the North Eastern states of India (Bnei Menashe) have also been immigrating to Israel.
As the two countries enjoy civilisational relations that date back more than two millennia, affinity between them knows no bounds. In fact, enduring bond, rooted in shared values and mutual respect, continues to find new expressions in their current partnership.
–The writer is a senior journalist with wide experience in covering international affairs. The views expressed are of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of Raksha Anirveda
