Indian Premier Arrives In Israel For Breakthrough Visit
Image by Getty Images
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi to Israel, calling his visit “historic.”
Modi arrived in Israel on Tuesday afternoon, the first visit to Israel by an Indian head of government. The visit comes 25 years after the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries.
Modi visited Israel in 2008 for the first time when he served as chief minister of the Indian state of Gujarat.
“My visit celebrates the strength of centuries-old links between our societies,” Modi said during a welcoming ceremony at Ben Gurion International Airport. He said he would work to build “a strong and resilient partnership with Israel.”
Netanyahu said in his remarks: “Prime Minister, we’ve been waiting for you a long time. We’ve been waiting almost 70 years in fact because yours is truly a historic visit.”
Netanyahu announced that the two leaders would sign an agreement for a $40 million innovation fund. The visit is expected to boost economic and defense ties between the two countries.
Among Modi’s first stops on Tuesday was the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial and museum.
A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse..
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
