NEW DELHI – India and Israel have strengthened the bilateral defence tiesmultifold and Pakistan needs to keep an eye on it. Israel had suppliedweapons to India during the 1971 war with Pakistan after former primeminister Indira Gandhi had written to Israeli PM Golda Meir.
Indian Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa will be inIsrael from May 21 to 24 to take part in a conference on the occasion ofthe 70th anniversary of the Israel Air Force. ACM Dhanoa will attend the”Air Superiority as a Bridge to Regional Stability” conference during thefour-day tour and also discuss strategic issues with the Israeli militaryleadership and chiefs of over 20 other air forces.
Defence ties between India and Israel have grown manifold in the lastcouple of decades. India has emerged as Israel’s biggest arms market andhas been purchasing around $1 billion worth of weapons every year. Airforces of the two countries have also taken part in several professionalexchange programmes over the last few years including Israel’s largest airexercise – 2017 Blue Flag exercise. ACM Dhanoa will also visit bases of theIsrael Air Force, monuments of Israeli military aviation and culturalheritage.
In January, India cancelled the USD 500 million order to but Spikeanti-tank guided missiles from Israel’s state-owned defence contractorRafael. However, India is going ahead with the acquisition of 131 Baraksurface-to-air missiles by Rafael. The deal is worth USD 72 million. In2009 Israel had sold Barak 8 air defence system to India for USD 1.1billion.
The two countries established diplomatic ties only in January 1992 but thedefence deals go back to 1962 when the then prime minister Jawaharlal Nehruwrote to his Israeli counterpart Ben Gurion and asked him to supply armsand ammunition during the Sino-India war. Israel had then accepted Nehru’srequest and supplied the weapons.