The diplomatic relationship between India and Israel has undergone a remarkable transformation since the formal establishment of ties in 1992. Over the years, both nations have cultivated a multifaceted partnership that spans various sectors, from defence and technology to agriculture and counter terrorism. The evolution of this strategic relationship has not only strengthened bilateral cooperation but also has the potential to shape India’s future geopolitical policies in significant ways.

Historical Background (1992 - 2000): Building foundations

The initial years of diplomatic engagement laid the groundwork for the burgeoning alliance. In 1992, India recognised Israel de jure, leading to the establishment of full-fledged diplomatic relations. This breakthrough marked the end of decades of limited engagement and set the stage for an new era in bilateral ties. The first visit by top leaders, including the historic visit of Indian Prime Minister Narasimha Rao to Israel in 1994, and Israel president Ezer Weizmann’s reciprocal visit to India in 1997, played a pivotal role in building trust and understanding. By 2000, the two nations were on a path to deeper collaboration.

Deepening ties (2001 - 2010): Expanding Horizons

The early 21st century witnessed an expansion of cooperation across various sectors. High level visits, such as Israel prime minister Ariel Sharon’s trip to India in 2003 and Indian Foreign Minister S.M Krishna’s visit to Israel in 2010, underscored the growing warmth in bilateral relations. Both nations found common grounds in areas like defence, technology and agriculture. Israel’s expertise in water management, agriculture and defence technologies became particularly crucial for India, and collaborations flourished in these domains.

Strategic partnership (2011 - 2020): Strengthening bonds

The second decade of the 21st century marked a period of consolidation and diversification of ties. The historic visit of Indian Prime minister Narendra Modi to Israel in 2017 marked a watershed moment, as it was the first - ever official visit by an Indian prime minister. The visit elevated the relationship to a strategic partnership, emphasising shared values and common concerns. Defence collaboration, in particular, became a cornerstone of the relationship. Israel emerged as one of the India’s significant defence partners, providing cutting edge technologies and expertise. The two nations jointly developed and tested defence systems, fostering a sense of mutual security.

Future Implications: Shaping geopolitical policies

India - Israel relations have evolved into a crucial pillar of India’s foreign policy, influencing its geopolitical posture in several ways.

1.     Defence and Security:

The robust defence partnership with Israel has enhanced India’s military capabilities, contributing to its ability to address regional security challenges. Since establishing ties in 1992, India and Israel have traversed a long path. The defence and security partnership provided the anchor for this bilateral interaction. The Kargil war of 1999 cemented this corporation when Israel was one of the few countries to provide direct military assistance to India. Notably these robust ties precede the India - US defence cooperation which materialised much later. This has made India the largest purchaser of Israeli weapons in the last decade, surpassing even the United States, Israel’s principal military ally in West Asia.

India’s arms purchase has provided Israel’s defence-industrial base with steady and much - coveted access to a sizeable market. This passage to the Indian market is even more significant for Israel’s defence industry since the United States, concerned with the qualitative upgrade of Chinese military capabilities, had vetoed Israeli arms sale to China in the late 1990’s and early 2000’s Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, missiles, and radar systems have dominated India’s purchase from Israel, totalling worth US$ 4.2 billion (2001 - 2021). 

These equipment’s and platforms have undoubted strengthened the Indian surveillance and operational capabilities, particularly in Kashmir valley and the borders. For example, Israel Heron drones, hand - held thermal imaging devices, and night vision imaging equipments have proved advantageous for the Indian army in checking infiltration on the line of control and counter insurgency operations in the Valley’s hinterland.

Beyond defence trade, India and Israel have also been engaged in defence technology cooperation. The symbol of this success is the Barak -8 air and missile defence system. Co - developed by the IAI and India’s DRDO, Barak -8 is available in land and maritime versions. It can intercept targets like fighter aircraft, drones, ballistic and cruise missiles up to 150 km. There are considerable efforts to strengthen the relation and establishing bilateral sub - working group on defence industrial cooperation between Israel’s directorate of defence Research and development and India’s DRDO.

2. Economic Collaboration:

Strengthened economic ties, particularly in sectors like agriculture and water management can have contributed towards India’s quest for sustainable development and resource optimisation.

Since the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Israel in 1992, bilateral trade and economic relations have progressed rapidly. From US$ 200 million in 1992 (comprising primarily of diamonds), merchandise trade diversified and reached US$ 10.77 billion ( excluding defence) in FY 2022 -23, with Indian merchandise exports to Israel at US$ 8.45 billion and Israeli merchandise exports to India at US$ 2.32 billion. In FY 2023-24 (April - October), bilateral trade stands at US$ 4.42 billion (excluding defence).

In April 2023, Israeli Minister of Economy and Industry, MK Nir Barkat, paid an official visit to India, along with a fifteen - member business delegation. In May 2023, the then-Foreign Minister of Israel Eli Cohen paid an official visit to India accompanied by a high level business delegation. India is Israel’s second largest trading partner in Asia and the seventh largest globally. Though bilateral trade is dominated mainly by diamonds, petroleum products and chemicals, recent years have seen an increase in trade in areas such as electronic machinery and high - tech products; communication systems, medical equipment’s.

Major exports from India to Israel:

It include pearls and precious stones, automotive diesel, chemical and mineral products, machinery and electrical equipment’s, plastics, textile and apparel products, base metals and transport equipment, agricultural products.

Major export from Israel to India:

It include pearls and precious stones, chemical and mineral/ fertiliser products, machinery and electrical equipment, petroleum oils, defence, machinery and transport equipment.

Cooperation in Agriculture and Water technologies:

Agriculture:

An agreement for cooperation in agricultural was signed between the two countries in 1993. The agreement provided for cooperation in Agricultural Science and Technology including Research and Education, Extension, and Training and Joint Research Projects. Under a comprehensive Work plan for cooperation in agriculture, signed on 10 May 2006, bilateral projects are implemented through MASHAV Agency for International Development Cooperation under Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and CINADCO ( Centre for International Agricultural Development Cooperation of Israel’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural development ). MASHAV is active in India with many experimental and demonstration projects and operates an agricultural demonstration farm in Pusa. In May 2023, ICAR ( Indian Council for Agricultural Research) and MASHAV signed a declaration of Intent on thee establishment of India Israel Innovation Centre for Agriculture (IIICA).  

The fifth three- year bilateral work program (2021 - 2023) was signed in May 2021. The work program aims to grow the existing Centers of Excellence (CoE), establish new CoE’s, increase CoE’s value chain, bring the CoEs into the self-sufficient mode, and encourage private sector companies and collaboration. The new work program also focuses on converting the villages surrounding these CEOs into villages of Excellence through outreach programs. The concept of Village of Excellence (VoE) is aimed at creating a model ecosystem in agriculture across eight states in India, alongside select Centers of Excellence within 75 villages.

31 CoE’s are fully active in 13 Indian States ( Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Mizoram, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and West Bengal.

Water Technologies:

In May 2023, India and Israel signed Letters of Intent to establish Centres of Water Technology (CoWT) in the IIT- Madras and IIT - Roorkee respectively. These Centres will focus on Water Technologies and Water Resource Management in India with the key objective of implementing Israel’s water technologies, tailor made to Indian requirements, on sustainable management solutions for the Indian water sector.

A 2018 report by the NITI Aayog finds that 600 million people face high to extreme water stress. India’s increasingly erratic monsoon adds to this challenge. The problem gets compounded by the significant percentage of rural households that solely depends on agriculture for their livelihood. Since 2022, cereal prices in India have spiked and will likely remain elevated due to lower production from scanty rainfall. In February, cereal inflation peaked at 15 percent and 18 percent for urban and rural areas, respectively. India’s rain - fed agriculture is in dire need of the latest technologies that ensure adequate water supply to crops.

In 2019, an Israeli drip irrigation company, Metzer Group, inaugurated a plant in Hyderabad as a joint venture with India’s Skipper Ltd. Israel’s IDE technologies is building desalination plants in India. IDE has built India’s largest desalination plant in Jamnagar with a capacity of 160,000 cubic meters daily. Israel’s Watergen and India’s SMV Jaipuria Groups 2022 joint venture seeks to build water from air technologies over the next three years, with investment of over US$50 million, including a manufacturing plant.

Indian Foreign policy under INC and BJP towards Israel:

India's foreign policy towards Israel has generally shown consistency across different political administrations, including those led by the Indian National Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Both parties, while having distinct ideological backgrounds, have contributed to the development and strengthening of India-Israel relations.

Indian National Congress:

1.     Establishment of Diplomatic Ties (1992):

The Congress led government, under Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao, played a pivotal role in formally establishing diplomatic relations with Israel in 1992. This marked a significant departure from India’s previous approach, which had been characterised by a lack of formal ties. 

2. Incremental Growth (1992-2014):

Congress-led governments, over the years, continued to engage with Israel, fostering collaborations in various fields. Notable visits, such as those by President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, indicated a commitment to expanding the scope of the bilateral relationship.

3. Defense and Agriculture Ties:

Under Congress-led governments, there was an emphasis on defense and agriculture cooperation with Israel. The defense collaboration included the purchase of defense equipment and joint military exercises.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP):

1.     Strengthening Ties (1998-2004):

The BJP, during Atal Bihari Vajpayee's tenure as Prime Minister (1998-2004), continued and strengthened the engagement with Israel. The Vajpayee government elevated the relationship, and this period saw high-profile visits, including Vajpayee's own visit to Israel in 2000.

2. Strategic Partnership (2014 Onward):

The BJP, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi since 2014, took India-Israel relations to new heights. Modi's historic visit to Israel in 2017 marked a significant milestone as the first-ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Israel. The visit emphasised the strategic nature of the partnership.

3. Diversification of Ties:

Under the BJP government, there has been an expansion of cooperation beyond defense, encompassing areas such as technology, innovation, water management, and counter-terrorism. Both nations have explored opportunities for collaboration in economic and developmental spheres.

Continuity in Policy:

Despite the differences in the ideological foundations of the Congress and BJP, there has been a remarkable continuity in India's approach towards Israel. The recognition of Israel in 1992 was a bipartisan decision, and subsequent governments, regardless of their political affiliations, have continued to build on that foundation.

In summary, both the Congress and BJP have contributed to the growth of India-Israel relations, with each government adding its own nuances and emphasis to specific areas of collaboration. The overall trajectory has been one of strengthening ties, culminating in a robust strategic partnership.

Factors that made India to bring about a significant change in its Foreign policy towards Israel:

India's decision to formally establish diplomatic relations with Israel in 1992 marked a significant shift in its foreign policy. Several factors contributed to this change in stance:

1.     End of the Cold War: The end of the Cold War in the late 1980s and early 1990s altered global geopolitical dynamics. With the Cold War no longer dominating international relations, India had greater flexibility to pursue independent foreign policy decisions.

2.     Evolving Global Landscape: The global political scenario underwent substantial changes, and India sought to adapt to these changes. The disintegration of the Soviet Union and the changing dynamics in the Middle East influenced India’s foreign policy calculations.

3.     Pragmatic Diplomacy: India's decision to establish diplomatic relations with Israel was driven by a pragmatic understanding of its national interests. Forming diplomatic ties with Israel was seen as a strategic move that could benefit India in various fields, including defence, technology, and agriculture.

4.     Normalisation of Relations: The normalisation of relations between Israel and several other nations in the aftermath of the Cold War set a precedent. India's decision to establish formal ties with Israel reflected a broader trend of countries engaging with Israel on diplomatic and economic fronts.

5.     Growing Economic and Technological Ties: Israel was gaining international recognition for its advancements in technology, agriculture, and defense. Recognising the potential benefits of collaboration, India sought to build economic and technological ties with Israel, which aligned with its goals of modernisation and development.

6.     Shift in Regional Dynamics: The changing dynamics in the Middle East also played a role. The Madrid Conference in 1991, which brought together various Middle Eastern nations to discuss peace, signalled a shift in regional dynamics. India's decision to establish ties with Israel was part of its broader approach to engage with countries in the Middle East.

7.     Global Diplomacy and Multilateral Relations: As India aimed to play a more active role in global diplomacy, establishing diplomatic relations with Israel was seen as a step towards broadening its international engagement. This move was not isolated but part of a larger strategy to enhance India's presence on the global stage.

8.     End of Isolation for Israel: Israel faced a degree of diplomatic isolation in the earlier years due to the Arab-Israeli conflict. However, with the changing geopolitical scenario, India's decision to establish diplomatic relations with Israel contributed to the normalisation of Israel's diplomatic standing on the world stage.

Ideological drivers for Indian Foreign Policy:

Chanakya, also known as Kautilya or Vishnu Gupta, was an ancient Indian philosopher, teacher, economist, and political strategist who is traditionally identified as the author of the "Arthashastra," an ancient Indian treatise on statecraft, military strategy, and economic policy. While the Arthashastra was written over 2,000 years ago, its principles have often been invoked and analysed in the context of modern Indian foreign policy. Here are some key aspects of Indian foreign policy in light of Chanakya's Arthashastra:

1.     Realism and National Interest:

1.            Chanakya's Principle:

The Arthashastra emphasises the importance of realism in statecraft. Chanakya advises rulers to act in the interest of the state, considering power dynamics and geopolitical realities.

2.            Application:

Indian foreign policy, like Chanakya's teachings, often prioritises national interest. Decisions are made with a pragmatic understanding of the global landscape, economic considerations, and the security needs of the nation.

2.  Diplomacy and Alliances:

1.    Chanakya's Principle:

The Arthashastra underscores the strategic valueof alliances. Chanakya suggests forming alliances based on mutual benefit, and he acknowledges the significance of diplomatic negotiations.

2.    Application:

India engages in diplomatic efforts globally, forging partnerships and alliances that align with its interests. The country is known for its non-aligned stance during the Cold War and seeks strategic partnershipsbased on shared objectives in the contemporary geopolitical landscape.

3.  Military Strategy:

1.    Chanakya's Principle:

The Arthashastra discusses military strategy,emphasizing the importance of a well-trained and disciplined army to protect the state.

2.    Application:

India maintains a robust military capability and places importance on defence modernization. It also focuses on strategic autonomy and self-reliance in defence production.

4.  Economic Policy:

1.    Chanakya's Principle:

Economic strength is considered vital for the stability and security of the state in the Arthashastra. Chanakya outlines principles ofeconomic governance, trade, and taxation.

2.    Application:

India's foreign policy includes economic diplomacy, fosteringtrade and economic ties with various nations. The country engages in regionaland international economic forums to promote its economic interests.

5.  Soft Power and Cultural Diplomacy

1.    Chanakya's Principle:

The Arthashastra acknowledges the importance of soft power, including culture and moral authority, in influencing other states.

2.    Application:

Indian foreign policy incorporates soft power elements, such ascultural diplomacy, promoting yoga, and showcasing its rich cultural heritage.The focus on "Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam" (the world is one family) reflects India's commitment to promote an uniform moral platform both domesticallyas well as internationally, something that would not go well, hand in hand with India’s long time stand of religious tolerance and inclusive policy.

6. Security and Intelligence:

1.    Chanakya's Principle:

The Arthashastra recognises the role ofintelligence in statecraft, with an emphasis on gathering information and maintaining security.

2.    Application:

India places importance on intelligence agencies for nationalsecurity. It collaborates with various nations to address common securitychallenges, including counter-terrorism efforts.  

In conclusion, while the Arthashastra was written in a different historical and cultural context, its principles continue to resonate in various aspects of Indian foreign policy. The pragmatic and strategic approach advocated by Chanakya finds expression in India's contemporary dealings with the global community. 

The evolution of India - Israel relations reflects a journey from cautious engagement to a robust strategic partnership. As both nations continue to navigate the complexities of the global geopolitical landscape, the enduring friendship has the potential to shape India’s future policies significantly. The collaborative efforts in defence, Science Technology, and diplomacy underscore a shared commitment to progress, stability and security, laying the foundation for a dynamic and impactful partnership in the years to come. India's decision to change its stance on Israel was influenced by a combination of strategic, economic, and geopolitical considerations. The end of the Cold War and the evolving global landscape provided India with the opportunity to recalibrate its foreign policy, leading to the establishment of formal diplomatic relations with Israel in 1992. However, there is one factor that is a common denominator to all the domestic or foreign policies that India exhibit, which is to look after its own national interest. Now this National interest can encompass a wide meaning, from satiating the needs of an individual party in power to portraying an inclusive domestic policies appeasing the collective consciousness of a global population belonging to a minority group within a nation.