Prime Minister Narendra Modi in talks with his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday expressed India's firm belief in dialogue and pursuing peaceful solutions while resolving regional conflicts, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said at the conclusion of the two-day State Visit.
Addressing a special press briefing, Misri stated that PM Modi reiterated India's readiness to offer support towards a peaceful solution. When asked whether ongoing tensions between Iran and US were discussed during the discussions held between PM Modi and Netanyahu, Misri said, "I would just like to mention that the regional situation, these tensions, other tensions as well that figure in the region without going into details, did come up for discussions between the two Prime Ministers.
The Prime Minister made his point stating India's firm belief in the value of dialogue and the value of pursuing peaceful solutions to all such issues and also reiterated his readiness to offer India's support if there is any way in which India's support is required to stand ready to offer that support towards a peaceful solution."
This visit, Misri stated, comes in the context of the Prime Minister’s own efforts to take a keen interest in and pursue India’s relations with all the countries in the West Asia region.The Foreign Secretary mentioned further that Prime Minister Modi's visit to Israel reflects the high priority India attaches to its bilateral relationship with Israel.
This visit, he said, marks a very significant milestone in India-Israel relations and reflects the progress made over the past decade, setting the stage for the next phase of this important partnership."This visit has succeeded in further deepening and strengthening the multifaceted partnership between the two countries and in providing renewed impetus to the joint efforts of these two democracies to advance their shared objectives of peace, innovation, and prosperity," he said.
"Yesterday, the highlight of the Prime Minister’s programme was his address to the Knesset, where he was invited by the Speaker of the Knesset, Amir Ohana, to address a special plenary session. The session was also addressed by Prime Minister Netanyahu and Leader of the Opposition Yair Lapid.
The Prime Minister was also conferred the Medal of the Knesset in recognition of his exceptional contribution through his leadership in strengthening the strategic relations between India and Israel. Prime Minister Modi is the first recipient of this medal," Misri added.
Earlier in the day, PM Modi and Netanyahu held a meeting in Jerusalem and discussed bilateral ties, including areas of technology and innovation, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and critical minerals, defence and security, trade and economy, labour mobility and education, blue economy, agriculture and health.
The two leaders also announced elevating ties to India-Israel Special Strategic Partnership for Peace, Innovation and Prosperity.External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval and other officials were also present during the meeting.