US President Donald Trump called Jerusalem the capital of Israel on December 6 and began the process of moving his country’s embassy to the city. The move sparked global condemnation from world leaders.
Along with 119 countries, India also voted against Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and the impact is India preparing a grand welcome for Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu on his visit to India in the coming month? The relations between these two countries have broadened remarkably since India recognized Israel diplomatically in 1950.
Why Jerusalem on Edge?
A major reason why Jerusalem always on the edge, prophecy in Bible – Zechariah 9:10 I will take away the chariots from Ephraim and the warhorses from Jerusalem and the battle bow will be broken. He will proclaim peace to the nations. His rule will extend from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the earth.
Almost 420,000 Palestinians in East Jerusalem have “permanent residency” ID cards and they also carry temporary Jordanian passports without a national identification number which emphasize that they are not full Jordanian citizens – they need a work permit to work in Jordan and do not have access to governmental services and benefits.
Jerusalemites and Palestinian are become stateless due to legal limbo – they are not citizens of Israel, nor are they citizens of Jordan or Palestine.
Defence relation has a long story with Israel as arms supplier almost $1 billion every year. The arms acquisitions range from Phalcon AWACS (airborne warning and control systems) and Searcher, Heron and Harrop UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) to Aerostat and Green Pine radars, Barak anti-missile defense and several types of missiles and laser-guided bombs.
In the month of November 2017, India dispatched a C-130J ‘Super Hercules’ aircraft along with a 45-member contingent, including Garud commandoes, to Israel to take part in a multilateral ‘Blue Flag-17’ exercise. The exercise was the first instance of an Indian contingent participating in a military exercise in Israel. This was also the first occasion when the air forces of the two nations came together in a multilateral exercise setting.
In February 2014, India and Israel signed three important agreements — Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters, Cooperation in Homeland and Public Security, and Protection of Classified Material.
In India, Pakistan Kargil War in 1999 Israel was one of the main suppliers of weapons.
Space relation during the PM Modi visit, to Israel, there was also a sign between space agencies to work in areas including atomic clocks and electric propulsion for small industries.
This year, the government-owned aerospace giant Israel Aircraft Industries signed deals with India totaling over $2.6 billion.
In July, India also signed several agreements with Israel on science, agriculture, and technology. The bilateral trade among the countries grew from USD 200 million in 1992 to USD 4.16 billion in 2016.
FDI inflows from Israel to India from April 2000 to September 2016 totaled USD 107.6 million, according to figures released by the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion, India.
Every year, 35,000 Israelis visit India for tourism, business, and other purposes.
Since 2012, Israel also offering post-doctoral scholarships to India students and five Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) scholarships are offered to Israeli students every year. An equal number of scholarships are offered by Israel for 10-month programs in specialized fields of study.
