Goal is to build long-term strategic partnership with India, says Israeli FM Sa'ar

New Delhi, Nov 4 (IANS) Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar said on Tuesday that India and Israel share "warm friendship" and their goal is to build a "long-term strategic partnership" between the two nations.

In his opening remarks during his meeting with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar in New Delhi on Tuesday, Sa'ar expressed appreciation for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's solidarity following the Hamas attack on October 7, as he was the first world leader to call Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

He said, "We appreciate Prime Minister Modi's strong solidarity. We remember that he was the first world leader to call Prime Minister Netanyahu after the Hamas October 7 massacre, and we won't forget it. Minister, I believe that India is the future, I told you that. India is the world's largest democracy and the fastest-growing economy. India is a global superpower. Israel is a regional powerhouse. Our nations already share a warm friendship. Our goal is to build a long-term strategic partnership between Israel and India."

He called radical terror a mutual threat for both Israel and India and condemned the terrorist attack that took place in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam on April 22.

"Radical terror is a mutual threat to Israel and India. We strongly condemn the horrific terror attack in Pahalgam. In the Middle East, Israel faces a unique phenomenon, which I call terror states. The radical terror states of Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon and Houthis in Yemen have established themselves over the past decades. Uprooting them is necessary for the security and stability of our region. The eradication of the Hamas terror state is at the heart of President Trump's plan. Hamas must be disarmed. Gaza must be demilitarised. We will not compromise on it," he said.

Expressing Israel's support for regional connectivity projects, he said, "I believe that the future for regional partnerships is bright. Israel supports regional connectivity projects such as I2U2 and IMEC. We want to promote connectivity between South Asia, West Asia and Europe."

Notably, I2U2 is a partnership between India, Israel, the UAE, and the US that's working to tackle global challenges and advance economic opportunities. In 2023, India, Saudi Arabia, UAE, France, Germany, European Union, the US and Italy committed to work together to establish the India - Middle East - Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC).

Gideon Sa'ar, who is on a two-day diplomatic visit to India, will meet with other senior officials in the Indian government. The visiting minister is also scheduled to meet other government officials, Ambassadors, diplomats, heads of research institutes, and local business leaders during the visit, the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated on Monday.

During his flying visit, the Foreign Minister will also deliver a briefing on Middle East Affairs to foreign policy and security scholars before returning to Israel on Wednesday.

--IANS

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