Israel awaits PM Narendra Modi: Of security, silicon and strategic signals

The PM's two-day Israel visit to feature Knesset address, and talks with Netanyahu on defence, counter-terrorism, IMEC, trade and artificial intelligence cooperation

On his two-day visit to Israel on February 25 and 26, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in Jerusalem, where he is scheduled to address the Knesset. His talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are expected to centre on deepening bilateral defence and security cooperation, including counter-terrorism, the India-Middle East-Europe Corridor (IMEC), trade, and collaboration in artificial intelligence. 

The two leaders will visit holocaust memorial Yad Vashem. Modi will also meet Israel’s President Isaac Herzog and attend an innovation event. Sources said the prime minister will not travel to Tel Aviv during his stay. India and Israel signed terms of reference in November to formally launch negotiations on a free-trade agreement, though officials caution that progress will take time. “We don’t see an outcome in the next few months. It will take some time. But we are working fast,” an official said. 

Speaking at an event on Sunday, Netanyahu outlined his vision of a “hexagon of alliances” spanning India, Arab nations, African nations, Mediterranean countries, notably Greece and Cyprus, and other Asian partners. He said the coming week would showcase “the special relationship forged over recent years between Israel and the global power that is India, and between myself and its leader, Prime Minister Modi.” 

Netanyahu described Modi as a personal friend, noting their frequent conversations and reciprocal visits. “I have visited India, and Modi has visited here. We waded together in the waters of the Mediterranean, and much water has flowed since then in the Mediterranean, the Ganges, and the Jordan -- though less in the Jordan,” he said. The “fabric of this relationship”, he added, “has grown tighter”, with Modi’s visit aimed at advancing decisions to strengthen economic, diplomatic and security cooperation. 

This will be Modi’s second visit to Israel, following his landmark trip in July 2017, the first by an Indian prime minister, when ties were elevated to a strategic partnership. Netanyahu travelled to India in January 2018, while then President Pranab Mukherjee visited Israel in October 2015. 

Modi and Netanyahu have remained in close contact since the Pahalgam terror attack. On April 24, 2025, Netanyahu called Modi to convey condolences after the attack on April 22. They spoke again following the outbreak of the Israel-Iran conflict on June 13, 2025. On October 9, Modi congratulated Netanyahu on progress under President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan. Further calls took place on December 10, 2025, and January 7, 2026, to discuss the regional situation. 

Israel’s foreign minister paid a two-day visit to India in November 2025. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich led a delegation to India in September 2025, when the two sides signed a Bilateral Investment Agreement. India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar visited Israel on December 16-17, 2025, while Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal travelled there in November, during which the FTA terms of reference were signed. 

In FY25, bilateral trade fell to $3.75 billion amid regional security tensions and disruptions, with India’s exports at $2.1 billion and imports at $1.6 billion. India is Israel’s second-largest Asian merchandise trading partner, historically led by diamonds, petroleum and chemicals, but increasingly diversified into electronics, high-tech goods, communications and medical equipment. Israel continues to support India in agriculture and water conservation through three-year work plans, with the sixth (2024-26) under way. Under these programmes, 43 Centres of Excellence have been approved across flowers, vegetables, fruits -- including mango, citrus, litchi, date palm and pomegranate -- and beekeeping, of which 35 are operational. 

India maintains its support for a two-state solution. On Friday, New Delhi said it had joined more than 100 countries and international organisations in condemning Israel’s attempts to expand unlawful settlements in the West Bank. India was absent from an earlier version endorsed by around 80 countries, drawing domestic criticism, including from opposition parties, before associating with a revised statement backed by roughly 20 additional participants. 

Asked about India’s initial absence, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the document had not been negotiated by the countries and organisations as has been the norm. “Our position on this issue was most recently expressed in the India–Arab League ministerial joint statement,” he said. At a meeting in New Delhi on January 31, India and the Arab League reaffirmed support for “a sovereign, independent and viable state of Palestine based on 1967 borders, living side by side in peace with Israel”, and called for a “just, comprehensive and lasting peace in the Middle East” in line with UN resolutions and the Arab Peace Initiative. Responding to a separate query, Jaiswal said India attended a meeting of President Trump’s Board of Peace in Washington on February 19 as an “observer”. India has not joined the body, formed to support redevelopment of the Gaza Strip. 

The Congress party criticised the government over India reportedly joining “late” the list of countries criticising Israel for its unilateral measures on the West Bank. In a post on X, Congress communications chief Jairam Ramesh called the move “sheer hypocrisy” and “cynicism”, noting India’s absence from the original UN statement. If Modi were “really serious”, Ramesh said, he should publicly express India’s concerns during his meeting with Netanyahu. 

More than 42,000 Indian citizens live in Israel, largely employed as caregivers, and in construction and agriculture, alongside diamond traders, IT professionals and students. Around 1,000 Indian students are enrolled, mainly in doctoral and postdoctoral STEM programmes. Israel is also home to more than 100,000 Jews of Indian origin, while recent years have seen immigration by members of the Bnei Menashe community from northeastern India.

 

Earlier this month, India and Israel signed an agreement to deepen defence ties and expand joint activities, including seminars and cooperative initiatives. Israel’s International Defence Cooperation Directorate (SIBAT), working with the Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers and India’s Ministry of Defence, this week hosted a seminar and B2B meetings between leading Indian and Israeli defence companies, Israel’s Ministry of Defense said.