PINR, After weeks of anxiety and uncertainty, Indo-Israeli relations appear back on track. The spate of political contacts clearly show that despite its past criticisms over the pro-Israeli policies of the previous right-wing government, India's Congress Party has come to recognize the need to continue with India's newly found friendship with Israel. The sudden demise of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in November 2004 appeared to have removed any lingering doubts in New Delhi over the place of Israel in India's overall Middle East policy. Having identified with him for so long, his death has enabled India, especially the Congress Party, to look at the broader Middle East without its traditional ties.
The Congress Party has been traditionally sympathetic towards the Palestinians and did not normalize relations with Israel until 1992. The roots of this policy can be traced to the early 1920s when Indian nationalists found a common cause with the Arab nationalists in Palestine and remained unsympathetic towards Zionist demands for a Jewish homeland. Its belated recognition in September 1950 was not followed by normalization of relations, and for over four decades the absence of formal ties was the hallmark of India's policy towards Israel. During this phase, Indian policy ranged from indifference to outright hostility that reached its crescendo in 1975 when it voted for the infamous U.N. resolution that equated Zionism with racism.
The end of the Cold War and the recognition of new Middle Eastern realities following the Madrid Conference of 1991 compelled India to reevaluate its sour relations. When the Arabs and Israeli leaders were seeking a negotiated political settlement, there was no reason for India to continue with its cold policy, and formal ties were established in January 1992. After some initial inhibitions, bilateral relations have improved considerably and a number of political, economic and military delegations have visited one another.
Read more here:
PINR.com
