Indo-Israeli defense cooperation in the Twenty-First century / Efraim Inbar and Alvite Singh Ningthoujam.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 26-30)

Since India and Israel first established diplomatic relations in 1992, defense cooperation has played a major role in bilateral ties, with India emerging as one of Israel{u2019}s largest arms clients. Furthermore, this relationship has strengthened since the Hindu-oriented Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of India came into power in 1998. , The BJP emphasized the threat of Islamist terrorism, thus making Israel a natural ally. Just as Israel faces tremendous security threats from Iran, due to its nuclear program and support for terrorist groups like Hamas and Hizballah, India remains concerned with the Pakistani nuclear arsenal and Pakistan-based terrorist activities. The U.S. decision to relax sanctions against India{u2013}which were imposed after the 1998 Pokhran nuclear test{u2013}also eased the way for closer ties between India and Israel. In addition, its subsequent international war on terror after September 11 created a political environment suitable for further bilateral cooperation. This paper focuses on the current Indo-Israeli defense cooperation and its constraints. The article begins with a brief historical account of this relationship, followed by a discussion of its progression into the defense arena in the late 1990s under the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government. Subsequently, it examines the magnitude of the more recent defense cooperation under a new Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. Finally, this paper attempts to examine the importance of factors constraining defense cooperation.