$10 billion business: How did Israel become India's most important partner

AVERAGE INDIAN

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Israelis never tire of telling the story of David Ben-Gurion's great respect for Mahatma Gandhi. The founder of Israel, Ben-Gurion's few possessions when he quit active politics and retreated into a shack in a kibbutz in his late years included a portrait of India's father of the nation which enjoyed pride of place in his small study. So deep is the connection between India and Israel, they assure you.

It's an irony then that India and Israel established diplomatic ties only as late as 1992 though the Jewish nation was founded in 1948, a year after India became independent. "But the two countries were always natural allies," says Yossi Melman, award-winning Israeli journalist. And nowhere is this "natural alliance" more evident than in defence where Israel has become India's second-largest supplier; in 2009, the West Asian nation briefly overtook Russia, India's largest and the oldest defence supplier. For all to see, the business relationship is thriving: in the past decade alone, Israeli defence sales to India surpassed $10 billion and the exports are expected to grow faster in the coming years. However, there is a flipside to it: Indian officials and industry insiders say there is more to this "flourishing partnership" than meets the eye. There is widespread bribing of Indian officials by Israeli companies, they say.

Famed Jewish Smartness

Corruption charges fly, but India continues to gain a lot from Israel's cutting-edge warfare technologies. "Nobody can beat Israelis in peddling weaponry. They are very, very good at it. It is tempting too because most often, they offer cutting-edge technology," said a former army officer who added that within weeks of Indian agencies detecting secret tunnels across the border from hostile neighbour Pakistan, Israelis have begun to suggest that India buy their "hot systems" to detect tunnels—which were of great use for Israel in cracking down on "secret" tunnel supplies from Egypt to Palestinians in Gaza. Israel's enemies transported everything from food to missiles through those underground tunnels.

"India will need them now because it has been found that there are tunnels dug by Pakistan to infiltrate to India," an Israeli official said asking not to be named.

The Israeli 'Invasion'
Israel is India's second-largest defence supplier, after Russia. With costs of Russian spare parts for replacement escalating by 300-500%, it won't be a surprise if Israel soon emerges as India's No. 1 supplier
Key Areas of Cooperation
Submarine-launched cruise missiles Micro-satellite systems for surveillance Laser-guided systems and precision-guided munitions Anti-ballistic missile systems Upgradation of all Soviet-origin aircraft, artillery, tanks, etc. Various radars

$10 billion business: How did Israel become India’s most important partner in the global arms bazaar - The Economic Times
 

Energon

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It's sad that Israel is defined only by it's military exploits and technology. Part of the blame goes to Israeli as well. Their currently leadership has decided to turn Israel into a hawkish entity that can unleash large scale violence at will. This is unfortunate because Israel has a lot more to offer than just weapons. They excel in numerous areas of high end technology with civilian applications like agriculture.Exchanges in these area are far more valuable and mutually beneficial than limiting the relationship to the military industrial complex, an area notoriously linked to corruption.

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Tshering22

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It's sad that Israel is defined only by it's military exploits and technology. Part of the blame goes to Israeli as well. Their currently leadership has decided to turn Israel into a hawkish entity that can unleash large scale violence at will. This is unfortunate because Israel has a lot more to offer than just weapons. They excel in numerous areas of high end technology with civilian applications like agriculture.Exchanges in these area are far more valuable and mutually beneficial than limiting the relationship to the military industrial complex, an area notoriously linked to corruption.

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It is that "hawkish" attitude that earns Israel the respect of its friends and the fear of its enemies and that's what is keeping them alive.

If Israel had been a pussy traitor like Congress, 26/11s would be a daily story in Israel considering its neighborhood.

It is about time India adopts a similar attitude rather than choose cheap politics for short-sighted seemingly "favoring" gains from misguided and identity crisis-struck masses of certain sections of Indian population.
 

Apollyon

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This is unfortunate because Israel has a lot more to offer than just weapons. They excel in numerous areas of high end technology with civilian applications like agriculture..
iirc, Israel is helping to set a world class agriculture research center and a farmer training institute in Gujarat
:cool2:
 

Energon

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It is that "hawkish" attitude that earns Israel the respect of its friends and the fear of its enemies and that's what is keeping them alive.

If Israel had been a pussy traitor like Congress, 26/11s would be a daily story in Israel considering its neighborhood.

It is about time India adopts a similar attitude rather than choose cheap politics for short-sighted seemingly "favoring" gains from misguided and identity crisis-struck masses of certain sections of Indian population.
Unleashing mass violence upon poorly armed civilians by razing entire cities in the name of fighting terror hardly deserves respect. Perhaps this is why Israel ranks pitifully in the surveys measuring global opinions. Israel's unfavorability is marginally better than the likes of North Korea, Pakistan and Iran; hardly seems like a sign of respect or admiration.

You admire Israel's penchant for violence because the poor saps at the receiving end are Muslims, and you would like to see this similar dynamic between India and Pakistan; however this admiration is misguided. This is not to say you're alone, many of my ignorant countrymen are under the same impression. Israel flaunts its intransigence and aggression and bombs countless innocent civilians with impunity not because they are great, it's because of America's global clout and our internal politics that makes successive American presidents let Israel get away with murder. It is because of the immunity we bestow upon Israel that emboldens them to be unapologetic about their indiscriminate acts of grotesque violence.

As a side note, Bibi Netanyahu is an @$$hole, as is his lapdog Michael Oren. These two turds have absolutely no respect or regard for the very hand that feeds them as they openly engage in propaganda and attempt to influence our presidential elections. I am glad that Obama has shown the fortitude to grab Bibi by the scruff of his neck and throw him out into the street.

Having said all of that I believe that Israel is a truly fantastic state. However the difference is that I don't think nations ought to be admired based on their negative attributes. The true reasons that make Israel exceptional are things like their relentless advances in science and technology through fantastic institutions of higher learning that they have built, the excellent economic system that promotes a great deal of entrepreneurship, their contribution to art, classical music and other cultural activities. Their real achievement lies not in their record of pounding the Arabs into the ground, but their brilliance in turning a fallow desert into one of the most productive agricultural centers.
 

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