Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will meet with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi "very soon," according to a statement from the Prime Minister's Office on Wednesday.
"Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently spoke with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. At the end of the conversation, which was friendly and warm, the two leaders agreed to meet very soon," the statement said.
The meeting between the two leaders has been postponed for some time; Netanyahu's visit to India has been pending ever since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war in 2023, The Times of India reported.
Modi's office also released a statement in which both leaders "strongly condemned terrorism and reiterated their zero-tolerance approach towards terrorism in all its forms and manifestations."
Netanyahu and Modi "expressed satisfaction at the continued momentum in India-Israel Strategic Partnership and reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthening these ties for mutual benefit," the statement read.
"They also exchanged views on the situation in West Asia. PM Modi reaffirmed India’s support for efforts towards a just and durable peace in the region, including early implementation of the Gaza Peace Plan," the statement concluded.
FM Sa'ar visits India
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar visited India in November and assured that Israel is committed to strengthening its ties with India during a dialogue with Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar in New Delhi.
"Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the first world leader to call Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu after Hamas’s October 7 massacre... We won’t forget it,” Sa’ar said.
India is “the world’s largest democracy and fastest growing economy,” he said. It is “a global superpower,” and Israel is “a regional powerhouse,” he added.
Israel and India already share “a warm friendship,” Sa’ar said, adding that the goal is “to build a long-term strategic partnership between Israel and India.”