Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu regarding progress on the India-Israel special strategic partnership, after the former received a phone call from the latter, as per a press release from the Centre on Thursday.
"The two leaders reviewed sustained progress in India-Israel Special Strategic Partnership and reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthening the bilateral cooperation across various sectors for the mutual benefit of the two countries," the release said.
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The two also exchanged their perspectives on the ongoing developments in West Asia and agreed to remain in touch, as per the release.
India and Israel had inked a total of 17 agreements and documents as a part of a special strategic partnership in February 2026. This was to faciitiate cooperation between the two countries regarding artificial intelligence, trade, investment, education, manufacturing, culture, maritime heritage, agriculture among other areas.
The nations also agreed to fast track a trade deal between them as a part of this arrangement. The countries also planned to expand upon their partnership in the defence space, working together to develop and produce military hardware.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had recently referred to PM Modi as "one of our greatest friends" and as the rationale for Israel investing heavily in ties with India as part of an effort to build additional alliances.
"We need to cultivate additional alliances. That's why I'm investing heavily in our relationship with India, with my friend Narendra Modi, who is one of our greatest friends," Netanyahu stated.
The remarks came after continued scrutiny of Israel's international standing following its conflict with Iran and ongoing military operations, with Netanyahu using the platform to highlight what he described as strong backing from India and the US under the Trump administration.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) had issued an arrest warrant for Benjamin Netanyahu for his alleged responsibility for the crimes against humanity of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts against the State of Palestine from at least Oct. 8 2023 until at least 20 May 2024, as per the official website.
The ICC tries individuals for genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and aggression.
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