External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will be on a five day official visit to Israel beginning today at the invitation of Alternate Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Israel Yair Lapid. This will be his first visit to the country as External Affairs Minister. He will hold a bilateral meeting with the Alternate Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Israel. He will also call on the President, the Prime Minister and the Knesset Speaker.
India and Israel elevated bilateral relations to a Strategic Partnership during the historic visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Israel in July 2017. Since then, the relationship between the two countries has focused on expanding knowledge-based partnership, which includes collaboration in innovation and research, including boosting the Make in India initiative.
The External Affairs Minister will interact with Indian-origin Jewish community in Israel, Indologists, Indian students who are currently pursuing their education in Israeli universities and business people including from the hi-tech industries.
External Affairs Ministry said, the visit will also be an occasion to pay tribute to the valiant Indian soldiers who laid their lives in the region, especially during the First World War.
