Israel & India : New Best Friends

[LoveIsrael]

Guys,

This thread is for latest news & discussions between India & Israel.


OLD post was closed due to 200 responses .
: http://www.israelforum.com/board/sho...=&threadid=876

Why Indians love Israeli people
----------------------------------------

This is a question that comes to your mind.... again, again

The answer can be very complex & very simple. I will try to give you a rational answer. Both of our nations have too many similarities. We became independent at the same time. We are just few months older to Israel. We are pluralistic societies. Both have the unfortunate experiences of non friendly neighbors. However the real reason I can give is that

" Israel Loves India"

The youth are so crazy about India that as soon as the army training is over most of them are in India.

The Jews respect India for one thing & that is they have never ever been persecuted here.

Jews first settled in India during the time of King Solomon, when there was trade in teak, ivory, spices and peacocks between the Land of Israel and the Malabar Coast, where Cochin is located. Others put their arrival at the time of the Assyrian exile in 722 B.C.E., the Babylonian exile in 586 or after the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE No reliable evidence exists, but most contemporary scholars fix the date at some time during the early Middle Ages.

It is the bible that contains the first mention of Jews in connection with India .


You visit Kibbutz (Commune) in Israel, a software house, a University, the diamond market or a religious place you will meet people who wish to make friendship with you. Even when I have visited the embassy at New Delhi and the Consulate in Mumbai & I have met wonderful people.

[The Indian]

Israel, India to launch shared satellite

AFP[ FRIDAY, JANUARY 10, 2003 06:16:48 PM ]

JERUSALEM: Israel and India expect to jointly launch a telescope-equipped satellite within two years, the head of Israel's space agency, Avi Hareven, announced on public radio on Friday.

Israel joined the exclusive club of space spies last May when it launched its Ofek 5 satellite.

With a four-year-lifespan, Ofek 5 can photograph any region in the world 16 times a day.

Besides cooperating in space research with India, Israel also shares expertise with the United States, France, the Netherlands and Ukraine, Hareven said.

Hareven was interviewed as Israel is about to send its first astronaut to space, with Colonel Ilan Ramon set to lift off as a crew member of the US space shuttle Columbia on January 16.

NASA hand-picked picked Ramon, 48, as a payload specialist in 1997, and he has been in training at the space center here since 1998.

[Teacake]

I hope to see the 2 nations team up more often in fending off islamic terror.

[I am David]

They should get right down to it and form a close, tightnit military and economic alliance. Both countries can surely benifit from one another.

[humus_sapiens]

At a recent pro-Israel rally we've met a group of Indians expressing their sympathy to Israel. Later I decided to talk with some other Indian folks I knew earlier and we were amazed how many things India and Israel have in common: both are vibrant democracies, both for decades fight Islamic terror, emanated from neighboring Islamist tyrannical dictatorships.
Sometimes, Indian gov-t expresses support to the Palestinians to show they're balanaced, I wouldn't take it too seriously.

[IlyaFurman]

Originally posted by humus_sapiens
Sometimes, Indian gov-t expresses support to the Palestinians to show they're balanaced, I wouldn't take it too seriously.

Lets not forget India is 25% Muslim, and is the SECOND largest muslim state in the world after Indonesia. I have been to India for business related issues, in south india, karnataka to be exact, and all of the major movie stars and singers and athelets are muslim, and the muslim hindu unity is pretty strong. The Indian government and the hardcore hindues are leaning towards Israel but most people lean towards muslims.

[The Indian]

Ilya,

Actually about 15% of the population is muslim over all of India, rural and urban. If it were 25%, then there would be over 250 million muslims in India. This would make the muslim population greater than Indonesia, which it is not. In the cities the muslim percentage is higher and in the country side it is lower, thus explains what you saw in Karnataka.

Generally, the Indian muslims know that the road to prosperity is education and hard work. They know they are better off in India, rather than the terrorist slums of Pakistan, Bangladesh and ME countries.

I don't know what you mean by hard core Hindu, but most right-minded people support Israel.

[elke]

I don't think that it's surprising at all that Israel and India are friendly with each other: both are ex-colonial, successful democracies, with diverse populations and similar problems and advantages.

In fact, what's odd is that there aren't more countries in Africa, for example, who are friendly with both India and Israel. They have so much to learn from them! The problem with the Third World is not so much the lack of resources, as it is the lack of knowledge of what to do with them. Both India and Israel have managed to do what these countries need to do in order to succeed and get out of the rut they are in. The logical conclusion that can be drawn is that there is something Israel and India have done that these countries have not - or vice versa. Ergo, see what that "something" was and do the same!

Instead, the politicking and the intimidation continue, keeping these poor nations poor. This is the proper job of the UN - to coordinate efforts to bring these countries out of poverty, through analysis and application of the principles that allowed India and Israel to do it.

[GauravS]

I got this from the ACIG forum:

Last year, MK Amnon Rubinstein led an Israeli parliamentary delegation on a visit to India. The delegation received an especially warm welcome, and there was much local interest. On their visit to Karla, in southern part of the subcontinent, ubinstein was the guest of the local television studio and was interviewed on Indian-Israeli relations. When the young interviewer asked why such a deep closeness, devoid of bad feeling, had developed between the countries, Rubinstein replied that the reason was bound up, among other things, with the fact that India is perhaps the only country where there have been no expressions of anti-Semitism toward the local Jewish community. The interviewer asked Rubinstein in all seriousness: "Excuse me sir, what is anti-Semitism?"
Rubinstein gaped astounded at his interviewer for a moment, then hugged him spontaneously, and declared that this was the most pleasing response that he could have wished for . The interview made waves, and the national television station of New Delhi reported it. Rubinstein: "The impression that I gained on this visit is that apart from the United States, the warmth toward Israel on the part of India has no equal."
Relations between India and Israel were never better. This year, both countries marked the tenth anniversary of the establishment of full diplomatic relations between them. In this short period, Israel has become one of India's important arms suppliers, second only to Russia, and threatening to take its place. India has become Israel's largest defense export target. Until a few years ago, both countries pursued an extra-cautious policy on the public nature of their bilateral ties, but today Major General Uzi Dayan, until recently the head of the National Security Council [NSC], describes the link as "a special strategic relationship," a definition that includes not only military cooperation, but ideological and strategic closeness on matters connected with the world balance of forces
The closeness between the only democracies in the zone lying between
the Mediterranean Sea and the Indian subcontinent derives in large part from the fact that both face a perpetual threat from radical Islam. Reserves Colonel Dr. Eran Lerman, who until this year served in a senior position in Intelligence Branch, was drawn into a somewhat surrealistic situation when he delivered a lecture last year to a delegation from the Indian National Security Council, which also included senior Indian
generals.
Lerman: "I found myself defending the good name of Islam in civilization, and directing its problematic nature to modern aberrations of totalitarian Islamism. Facing me were the Indian generals, and they came out with a strong attack on Islam in general. It was very interesting. Imagine for yourself an IDF general defending Islam in the face of a very aggressive attack by a general from a foreign army. Definitely an absurd situation."

[LoveIsrael]

India to send elite commandos to Israel for training
------------------------------------------------------------------


New Delhi, February 2:

With Islamabad - (PAKISTAN) showing no signs of relenting on infiltration in Jammu and Kashmir, the government has given a go ahead to the raising of four more battalions of special forces, who will be trained in Israel for specialised counter insurgency strikes.

The proposal for raising these new elite commando forces, specially in ‘‘irregular warfare’’, has been cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) and additional funds have been allocated for it, highly placed Army officials said.

The officers and men from these newly-raised battalions will be sent to Israel for special anti-insurgency warfare training, the officials added. A high-level Defence Ministry delegation is scheduled to visit Israel next week to clear the deck for the training.

India and Israel recently signed a 30-million dollar agreement to arm these special forces with Israeli tavros light weapons systems. The system is said to be the most advanced in contemporary warfare.

India already has brigade strength special forces comprising four battalions, 1 para-commandos, 9 para-commandos, 10 para-commandos and 21st para-commandos. While, 1 para- commandos, with deep sea divers in its ranks, specialises in anti-hijacking and hostage crises, the 9 para-commandos, with experienced mountaineers, is dedicated mountain guerrilla force. The 10 para-commandos is for desert operations and the 21st was raised recently for jungle terrain.

The Army brass was tightlipped about the role of the newly raised special forces, which will make India, only the fifth country in the world, to have division strength special forces after US, Russia, China and UK.

[Am Yisrael]

I heard recently that India is thinking (or maybe has) developed a unit dedicated to training undercover operators. Israel is one of those unique countries that has learnt unique tactics to fighting wars and terrorism. One being "mistaravim". The mistaravim are soldiers specifically trained to "be an arab" and go into the occupied territories to capture (or kill) a wanted terrorist. The reason for a unit like this is to conduct suprise attacks against terrorists who continually "hide" in places where soldiers cannot reach without being spotted, and of course the terrorist is long gone. I know soldiers such as the SAS are trained for undercover covert operations, but not like the Israeli mistaravim. In fact Israels mistaravim are so unique they are completely dedicated to undercover operations.

I think India and Israel can benifit from each other greatly, and joint military exercises will make a "bond" between the two countries. I think India will benifit more from Israels counter terrorism knowledge rather than war training, and India will benifit hugely from joint training with the mistaravim. Heres a site I found for those interested in Israeli special forces. The webpage given is that for the mistaravim: http://www.isayeret.com/units/land/s.../217/guide.htm

[Mr. Pumps]

I was wonder is there some dent in Israeli-Indian relaions bacause of Israeli Kfir warplanes being sold to the Buddhist-majority Sri Lanka armed forces agianst the LTTE Hindi-majority rebels....

I don't know.......

[Mr. Pumps]

Maybe at some point Russian and Israeli military planners should come together for both has extensive experience in guerilla warfare involving all aspects of weapons.

Russia has Chechnya of 1994-1996 and this recent Chechen war of 1999-2002 in which all manor of weapons were used and are still used.

Israel has had from 1982-2000 low scale warfare in South Lebanon with the Hizbollah. Agian with alot of weapons being used.

Both have been conventional armies experiencing warfare with a highly mobile, hit and run enemy who uses ambushes of day and night patrols, remote and command bomb attacks agianst sole vehicles, bunkers, outposts, roadblocks....etc.

[elke]

Oh, I would wait on such an alliance between Israel and Russia. Like many Arab/Muslim countries, the propaganda machine for the past 50 years has been hard at work in demonizing Israel, not to mention the ingrained antisemitism in many people there.

If I were Israel, I'd stick with India and give the Russians the run for their money Maybe, begin selling stuff to them!

[McSceptic]

I've a lot of time for India and its achievements, but the current ruling party (BJP) aren't the most pleasant bunch of Hindu fundamentalists.

World Evangelical Alliance:

Ever since coming to power in India in February 1998, the Hindu nationalist BJP has sought to 'Hinduise' India's education system. They have set about rewriting school history books by removing unfavourable archaeological information as well as material critical of the Hindu caste system. Instead, they promote Hindu nationalism, glorify upper-caste symbols and vilify Muslims and Christians as foreigners. (That ignores Christianity's long history in India, dating traditionally from 52 AD with the Apostle Thomas.) The 'new' history states, 'It is because of the conspiratorial policies of the followers of (Christianity) that India was partitioned. Even today Christian missionaries are engaged in fostering anti-national tendencies.' Please pray for the 2% Christian population, as all this can only breed serious intolerance and escalate persecution.