Israel, the state of Israel’s official Twitter handle has wished India on its 73rd Independence Day in 4 languages- English, Hindi, Kannada and Marathi. It has gladdened the hearts of Indians.
Israel is a unique country in more than one sense. The only Jewish state in the world, it’s surrounded by Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Jordan and Palestinian Territories of West Bank and Gaza Strip. It perpetually lives on the edge due to prolonged territorial dispute with Arab world. While the state was created out of delineation of Palestine with the consent of the Arab world, they refused to recognise its existence. Israel in turn forcibly occupied Palestinian Territories of Gaza Strip, West Bank and Golan Heights. The survival of the state of Israel in the midst of hostile Arab states is the stuff folklores are made of ! Of course, sustained and open support by US and Camp David agreement with Egypt brokered by US helped Israel no end to channelise its resources towards development. Today, it’s a superpower, very superior in technology, exporter of modern ammunition and has a very very strong military intelligence.
It has enjoyed good relations with India all along and openly supported India’s stand on various issues. In contrast, due to its own good relations with Arab world, India has been rather careful and discreet. But there’s no doubt that active cooperation between the two superpowers is absolutely critical to peace and stability, with several unstable nations surrounding both the countries.
Long live Indo-Israel friendship!
Arvind Arya blog 