Modi arrives in Israel to meet Netanyahu, address Knesset

India is part of what the Israeli PM has called a 'hexagon of alliances' to counter resistance forces in West Asia  News 

Desk - The Cradle 

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Israel on 25 February for two-day high-level discussions to raise bilateral relations to a “special strategic partnership,” with talks covering defense, technology, and economic cooperation. 

“Our nations share a robust and multifaceted Strategic Partnership,” Modi wrote in a post on social media before his departure.

“Ties have significantly strengthened in the last few years,” he said, adding, “I will be holding talks with [Israeli] PM Netanyahu, in which we will discuss ways to strengthen cooperation across diverse fields. I will also meet President Isaac Herzog, President of Israel.”

Modi said he would address the Israeli Knesset as a tribute to what he called strong parliamentary ties, meet the Indian diaspora, and hold talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before overseeing the signing of bilateral agreements and departing later that day.

India’s Ambassador to Israel, JP Singh, said the two countries “don’t compete, we rather complement each other,” pointing to talks on AI, cybersecurity, and quantum technology as part of efforts to move beyond “defense-only” ties and anchor the relationship as strategic. 

Netanyahu recently floated plans for a new regional grouping he termed a “hexagon” alliance aimed at countering “radical” Sunni and Shia-majority states, saying the bloc could include Israel, India, Greece, and Cyprus, alongside unnamed Arab, African, and Asian countries.

While none of the governments mentioned, including India, has formally endorsed the proposal, analysts say Modi’s presence in Israel will be interpreted by many as political backing for Netanyahu.

Senior Middle East Eye (MEE) reporter and author of the book ‘Hostile Homelands,’ Azad Essa, told Al Jazeera that India has emerged as Israel’s “strongest non-western ally,” describing the relationship as a “special relationship” rooted in “strategic cooperation and ideological convergence.” 

He said what was once a limited partnership has transformed under Modi into open alignment.

“The alliance between India and Israel is not just about weapon sales or trade,” Essa stated, adding that “It is about India’s open embrace of authoritarianism and militarism in building a supremacist state in Israel’s image.” 

Essa emphasized that “security, nationalism and democratic language” are being used to “justify and normalize increasingly illiberal policies,” with implications that extend far beyond the two countries.

He also highlighted that “the timing of the visit is notable,” arguing that with Netanyahu facing an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant, hosting the leader of the world’s “so-called largest democracy” amounts to “a ringing endorsement” of Israeli policies.

Modi’s visit comes during mounting regional strain, just days after India joined over 100 countries in condemning Israel’s de facto annexation of the occupied West Bank.

Tel Aviv and New Delhi had signed a new Bilateral Investment Treaty back in September last year amid Israel’s genocide in Gaza, and are now pushing toward a free trade agreement. 

Trade between India and Israel reached about $5 billion in 2025, with Israeli exports to India rising 50 percent over five years, making India Israel’s second-largest trading partner in Asia.

Defense, however, remains at the core of the relationship, with India accounting for 34 percent of Israeli defense exports, and arms sales totaling roughly $20.5 billion between 2020 and 2024.