Suchergebnisse

When Narendra Modi became prime minister in May 2014, Indo-Israeli relations were stable, progressing and expanding, though somewhat stagnant. Although military–security ties were a major component, active political intervention seemed necessary, as parties of the Left constantly demanded a 'course correction' vis-a-vis Israel from the decade-long United Progressive Alliance government under Manmohan Singh. While the Congress-led government withstood the pressure, relations with Israel were under stress, with little progress or visibility due to the stalled peace process. Under those circumstances, Modi became prime minister and ushered in dramatic changes in prioritising Israel in India's foreign policy matrix. This shift was also helped by a host of domestic and external factors.

The traditional framing of India's approach to the Palestine question is inadequate to explain the bourgeoning relations with Israel. Anti-colonialism through which Indian leaders and elites viewed the problem was important, but there are other issues, especially the religious dimension as manifested by the Congress–Muslim League rivalry, which influenced the Indian thinking. The prolonged depiction of the Indian position vis-à-vis Palestine through a moral prism became untenable in the wake of the normalization of relations with Israel in 1992 and hence it is essential to view the Palestine policy of India through a realist prism.