The Israel-India line is strengthened by ideology and technology

Since 2014, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been in power in India, and their political vision shows significant similarities with that of Israel. For example, parallels between them can be drawn from Hindu nationalism, which is known as Israeli security perspective or simply, in most of the aspects. This is a fact that both countries take very serious and strategic attitudes about security issues.

The cooperation between Israel and India can be said to be shaped not only on the basis of practical and economic interests but also through certain shared approaches.

There is no direct proportionality, but the demographic balance also attests equally to the sensitiveness in upholding social cohesion with national security in both India and Israel. It is within this background that the enhanced cooperation in intelligence and security between the two countries becomes even much more relevant.

The security cooperation of both countries does not just cover the threats, but it also relates to education and serves as a technology bridge. For example, the fact that India adopts certain technological systems of the Israel Defense Forces and Indian soldiers are participating in special programs can be highlighted as the expression of this collaboration.

This closeness is also seen in the technology sector, supported by real examples. Many Israeli tech companies use Indian engineers and developers, gaining from India’s talent pool especially in high-tech fields such as cybersecurity and artificial intelligence. So, Indian nationals are most often seen in Israel’s leading technology hubs.

Especially in Tel Aviv, the start-up environment has come to pull Indian engineers with many Indian professionals placed in unicorn companies. Likewise, investors from India are showing more interest in Israeli start-ups.

Conversely, Indian major cities have an active Israeli entrepreneurial presence with offices. An example is Aqua Security, based in Israel, which in 2021 set up an R&D center in Hyderabad as an organic part of the company’s global tech strategy. Another example is Aura Air, based in Israel, which entered the Indian market in 2022 with its branch office in Chennai to provide smart air management solutions.

Notable collaborations have also happened in the startup world. Ulo, which aims to grow significantly in the Middle East in the near future, is also a venture that attaches great importance to Israel. Also, Israeli companies such as eLoan and Nanofabrica have taken part in incubation programs in India and worked on joint research and developing products with partners here. When it invests in Indian tech startups, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) has taken defense and innovation cooperation between the two nations to a strategic plane.

Such investments reflect the confidence of Israeli companies in India’s young population and the expanding digital market, as well as the increasing technological needs Especially in health technologies and climate tech, Indian strategic focal part­ners share Israeli companies’ confidence in India’s young population and expanding digital market, as well as growing technological needs In strategic partners, in health technologies and climate tech, India has become one of the strategic focal points for Israeli companies

The India-Israel Industrial R&D and Technological Innovation Fund (I4F) set up by both governments take a first step in this direction of bringing companies together for projects. And it symbolizes the meeting points of the two nations’ visions on technology. These, in general, would be projects on water purification, smart agriculture, renewable energy, and digital health.

India benefits from the regional security strategies and crisis management experience of Israel. Israel, for its part, perceives the relationship with India as more than a tactical engagement, framing it as a strategic partnership. Joining in this closeness even more, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a historic visit to Israel in 2017. Through this visit, the political significance attached to the relationship was brought to the fore.

Both nations are seen to have developed strong narratives on a theoretical level binding national identity, security, and religious affiliation. There is seen to be á parallel drawn between the emphasis on Jewish identity in Israel and the focus on Hindu identity in India. However, this does not change the fact that both countries’ constitutional systems are designed to protect the rights of minorities.

Also, cultural and academic ties between Israel and India grow. Student and faculty swapping amid Tel Aviv and Haifa universities plus top schools in Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru are on the rise every year. This will help the young people in both nations get to know each other better, creating a sense of belonging.

The cooperation between Israel and India does not apply only to trade and military relations; rather, it is a multi-dimensional partnership based on mutual benefit in the fields of security, technology, agriculture, and infrastructure, among others. Especially in the technological aspect, mutual investments, collaborative innovation projects, and the exchange of experts have recently evolved as the main factors binding these two countries closer together. Such a relationship goes beyond the scope of regular diplomatic relations and extends to areas like education, entrepreneurship, or scientific research, and agriculture. The above cooperation is hoped to move to more institutionalized forms and to have more regional influence in the future.