PM Modi Israel Visit: PM Modi said in Israeli Parliament – ‘India-Israel friendship is important for the world’

Jerusalem. Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached Israel on Wednesday on a 2-day visit, where he was welcomed by Benjamin Netanyahu. While addressing the Israeli Parliament, Knesset, PM Modi said that I was born on the same day when India officially recognized Israel. Before this, slogans of Modi-Modi were also raised on reaching Parliament.

Before PM Modi, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Parliament said, “It has been a wonderful friendship. This morning, my wife Sara and I welcomed you (PM Modi) at the airport. And as soon as you came down the stairs, we hugged each other. It is something special to hug Prime Minister Modi in person. It is called the Modi hug. It is famous all over the world. When you hug someone, close, really, you know that It’s not a show. It’s a real thing.

Modi held an important meeting with Netanyahu, discussed many important issues

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday held an “excellent” meeting in which they discussed a range of issues and important developments in the region with an aim to boost bilateral ties. Modi is visiting Israel for the second time in nine years and was welcomed at the airport by Netanyahu and his wife Sara. The Prime Minister was given a grand welcome at Ben Gurion International Airport and a guard of honour. After the welcome ceremony, the two leaders held a private meeting at the airport.

Modi posted on ‘X’, “Had a wonderful meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu. I expressed my gratitude to him for his warm welcome today. I am very happy to come to Israel after nine years.” He said, ”We discussed many topics with the aim of promoting bilateral relations. There is immense potential for closer cooperation in areas like technology, water management, agriculture, talent sharing etc. We also discussed major developments happening in the region.

Earlier, Modi had said he was looking forward to “engaging in bilateral discussions and achieving meaningful outcomes that strengthen India-Israel friendship”. The Prime Minister said, “I am extremely touched by the warm welcome given by my friend, Prime Minister Netanyahu. I wish India-Israel friendship to become even stronger.

Netanyahu said he and Modi “have a close personal relationship, we speak often and I believe that the deep friendship between us clearly reflects on the relations between our two countries.” “Tomorrow we will visit Yad Vashem and then have another meeting with our team, in which we will sign several agreements in the economic, security and diplomatic fields, which will further advance cooperation between Israel and India,” he said.

When Modi arrived at the Hotel King David in Jerusalem, he was welcomed by members of the Indian community, including Indian-origin Jews, students, professionals and workers. Indian and Israeli artistes gave colorful cultural performances, which included traditional Thiruvathira dance from Kerala, Israeli folk dance Hawa Nagila and Ghoomar from Rajasthan. Disabled singers also performed on this occasion.

Modi’s visit is taking place amid ongoing tensions in West Asia, including deteriorating relations between the US and Iran, so its importance has increased even more. India-Israel relations reached the level of strategic partnership during Modi’s first visit to Israel in July 2017. India-Israel relations have improved significantly over the years in areas such as defence, scientific research, cyber security and innovation.