Netanyahu's India visit likely in "first half of this year": Israeli envoy

By Ayushi Agarwal
Bhiwani (Haryana) [India], January 22 (ANI): Israel's ambassador to India, Naor Gilon on Sunday expressed hope that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will visit India in the first half of this year.
During a telephone conversation with Netanyahu earlier month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi invited the Israeli PM to visit India at an early date.
"The two Prime Ministers spoke and in their conversation also, about meeting soon. I hope that Prime Minister Netanyahu will be able to meet. It's a new government, so a lot of things to do in the first few months. But I hope that he will be able to come here in the early part of this year, the first half," Israel's envoy told ANI in an interview.
"I am not sure, but that's what we are hoping for," he added.
Stating the 'outstanding' relations that both the countries have, the enjoy said that today the relations between the two countries are vast and inclusive in many fields from defense, technology, agriculture and etc.
"Our relations are really outstanding. We are celebrating 30 years, but there was a big push to our relations in the last five, six, and seven years, and today our relations, if they started mainly on defense, security, and agriculture what we see here, the center of excellence cooperation technology. Today our relations are very - very vast and are inclusive and in many many fields", said the Israeli envoy.
"We can be very proud in the position where we are in the relations today and we have a strategic partnership that I believe it's just going to grow further, deeper, bigger and stronger," he further added.
During the telephone conversation held between the two leaders earlier, PM Modi also congratulated Netanyahu for his appointment as the PM of Israel for the sixth time and wished him a very successful tenure.
As per an earlier press release by the Ministry of External Affairs, the two leaders during the telephone conversation also expressed satisfaction at the rapid progress in the India-Israel strategic partnership in recent years and agreed on the potential for further strengthening strategic cooperation in a variety of areas.
Likud Party leader Benjamin Netanyahu was sworn in as the Prime Minister of Israel on December 29th. Netanyahu, 73, took the oath after Israel's parliament, or Knesset, passed a vote of confidence in his new government. (ANI)