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Defence Minister of Israel Benny Gantz, who is visiting India, received a Tri-Service Guard of Honour in the presence of Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and laid a wreath at National War Memorial in New Delhi on Thursday.
The Israeli Defence Minister will also hold a bilateral meeting with Rajnath Singh at Vigyan Bhawan. Marking three decades of diplomatic ties between the two countries, Israeli Minister Gantz arrived in India yesterday. The visit was meant to take place in March but got cancelled after he contracted COVID-19 in the backdrop of a series of terror attacks in Israel that left dozens of people dead. Earlier in March, Israel's Defence Minister during a call with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh informed him that his proposed visit to India from March 30-31 had been postponed due to some unavoidable reasons. According to Israeli local media, the meeting in March was scheduled to include talks on improving security relations between India and Israel. The report added that Tel Aviv has sought to enhance defence ties with New Delhi in recent years, especially in the fields of air and missile defence. The year 2022 marks 30 years of diplomatic relations between India and Israel. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar paid an official visit to Israel from 17-21 October 2021. During the visit, Israel signed the instrument of ratification of the International Solar Alliance. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also met Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh on the sidelines of the COP26 Climate Summit in Glasgow on 2 November 2021. Moreover, Chief of Air Staff visited Israel from August 3-6, 2021. A contingent of 84 Indian Air Force personnel, along with five Mirage 2000 fighter aircrafts, participated in Israel's biennial multilateral Exercise Blue Flag from 13-28 October 2021. The annual India-Israel Joint Working Group (JWG) on Defence was held in Israel on October 26-27, 2021. The JWG was led by Defence Secretary from the Indian side. Chief of Army Staff visited Israel on 15-18 November 2021 during which he met Israel's senior military and civilian leadership and discussed avenues for further enhancing bilateral defence relations. (ANI)
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