Why in the News
India and Israel elevated bilateral relations to a Special Strategic Partnership for Peace, Innovation and Prosperity during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Israel. A total of 17 pacts were signed.
Key Outcomes
1. Upgrade of Bilateral Ties
- Earlier: Strategic Partnership since 2017
- Now: Special Strategic Partnership
- Focus on technology, defence, innovation and economic cooperation
2. Technology Partnership
- Launch of Critical and Emerging Technologies Partnership
- Cooperation in:
- Artificial Intelligence
- Quantum technologies
- Cyber security
- Critical minerals
3. Defence Cooperation
- Roadmap for joint development and joint production
- Emphasis on transfer of technology
- Defence ties described as expanding in scope and scale
4. Economic & Trade Measures
- Bilateral Investment Agreement operationalised
- FTA negotiations to be finalised soon
- UPI to be enabled in Israel
- Financial dialogue mechanism launched
5. Agriculture & Innovation
- Target of 100 Centres of Excellence
- Plan for Villages of Excellence
- India Israel Innovation Centre for Agriculture to be set up
- 20 joint agricultural research fellowships
6. Manpower & People Ties
- Expansion of labour mobility under 2023 agreement
- Quota of up to 50,000 Indian workers over five years
- Launch of India Israel Academic Forum
7. Regional & Global Issues
- Strong condemnation of terrorism
- Support for Gaza peace efforts
- Focus on IMEEC and I2U2 initiatives
Prelims Pointers
- India Israel ties established in 1992
- Strategic Partnership declared in 2017
- Now elevated to Special Strategic Partnership in 2026
- Cooperation spans defence, agriculture, AI, cyber security and innovation
- IMEEC: India Middle East Europe Economic Corridor
- I2U2: India Israel UAE USA grouping
| [2018] The term “two-state solution” is sometimes mentioned in the news in the context of the affairs of (a) China
(b) Israel (c) Iraq (d) Yemen |
