India’s PM to meet Netanyahu, address Knesset

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi will mark his second visit to Israel, with the two countries having deepened ties under the Hindu nationalist PM.
Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said there is a “tremendous alliance between Israel and India, and we are going to discuss all sorts of cooperation”.
‘Strategic partners’: India-Israel ties continue to improve
India and Israel view each other as “strategic partners”.

Modi’s last visit to Israel, in July 2017, marked the beginning of an era of enhanced ties. Netanyahu then visited India in January 2018.

In addition, Israeli minister for economy and industry, Nir Barkat, visited India in February 2025, while Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich led a delegation to the country in September 2025. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar held talks in the South Asian nation in November 2025.

The two countries cooperate in a wide range of areas. In the fiscal year 2024-25, bilateral trade stood at $3.75bn, with India’s exports to Israel at $2.1bn and imports at $1.6bn.

India was the largest importer of Israeli weapons during the 2020-24 period at 34 percent.

The two countries also cooperate in other areas, such as water, health, culture, as well as science and technology through bilateral agreements.

Modi’s visit: What’s on the agenda, and why it matters
Modi is expected to land at Ben Gurion airport outside Tel Aviv at 12:45pm (10:45 GMT).

The aim of Modi and Netanyahu is to use this visit to bolster strategic, economic and defence agreements between India and Israel, officials from both sides have said.

The two countries signed a new bilateral investment treaty in September last year, replacing the 1996 investment treaty, to provide “certainty and protection” to investors from both countries. They are also aiming to upgrade existing bilateral security agreements at this meeting.