Tel Aviv : Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said his country was “ready and willing” to share with India technology in areas such as aviation security, border protection and water harvesting, an official statement said Friday.
Netanyahu conveyed this to India’s Home Minister Rajnath Singh during their hour-long meeting here Thursday.
“Netanyahu briefed the home minister on technologies that have been developed by Israel in areas such as aviation security, border protection and water harvesting.”
“He said Israel was ready and willing to discuss transfer and development of such technologies with India,” a home ministry statement said.
The statement also said a delegation from the Israeli industry would be happy to visit India to explore manufacturing opportunities in different sectors.
In this context, Rajnath Singh also mentioned the possibility of exploring third country markets in Africa and Latin America, where Indian industry has a strong presence.
Rajnath Singh said that emphasis of India-Israel bilateral relationship should be on building a “hi-tech partnership.”
He also said that “terror was a threat not only to countries like India and Israel but to the whole world”.
Rajnath Singh commended the achievements of Israel and Israeli scientists in different fields and also referred to Indian achievements in science, including the concept of zero, decimals and algebra.
The minister made a special reference to the ‘Make in India’ campaign and invited Israeli industry, including from the defence sector, to take advantage of the “investment friendly policies” of the new government.
“Both the leaders discussed the regional situation and the terror threats to the global community…They reviewed existing cooperation and future possibilities in this area,” the statement said.
The home minister expressed satisfaction at the growth in bilateral ties in a range of areas, including defence and agriculture.
The statement said the meeting was held in “extremely cordial atmosphere” and “fruitful discussions” were held on a wide range of issues.
“Both leaders agreed that the Free Trade Agreement under discussion between the two sides should be signed early,” it added.
Netanyahu spoke about India and Israel as being two old civilizations, each with a capacity for science and innovation, and said his uncle, who was a mathematician, always used to tell him that the best mathematicians came from India.
Netanyahu said he was “greatly impressed” by his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New York and believed that relations between the two countries were poised for rapid development.
Rajnath Singh left New Delhi for Monaco Nov 3 to attend an Interpol ministerial meeting and general assembly.
As a part of the tour, the minister is also visiting Israel and France to discuss security related bilateral issues.