Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett expressed delight over his first scheduled official visit to India on April 2 this year at the invitation of his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, an Israeli government press release informed on Saturday.
“I am delighted to pay my first official visit to India at the invitation of my friend, Prime Minister Modi, and together we will continue leading the way for our countries’ relations,” Prime Minister Bennett said. The purpose of the visit is to advance and strengthen the strategic alliance between the countries, and to expand bilateral ties. In addition, the leaders will discuss the strengthening of cooperation in a variety of areas, including innovation, economy, research and development, agriculture and more,” the Press release by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) of Israel informed.
The Israeli PM will meet Prime Minister Modi and other senior government officials, as well as visit the Jewish community in the country.
This visit will reaffirm the important connection between the countries and the leaders and will mark the 30th anniversary of the establishment of relations between Israel and India, the press release further said.
The leaders first met on the sidelines of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow last October, at which Prime Minister Modi invited Prime Minister Bennett to pay an official visit to the country.
“The relations between our two unique cultures — the Indian culture and the Jewish culture — are deep, and they rely on deep appreciation and meaningful collaborations. There are many things we can learn from the Indians, and this is what we strive to do. Together we will expand our cooperation to other areas, from innovation and technology, security and cyber, to agriculture and climate change,” Bennett said while crediting PM Modi with “restarting relations between India and Israel.”