The possible Turkey-Pakistan-Saudi Arabia alliance became a major geopolitical development after reports emerged that Ankara was in advanced talks to join the Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement (SMDA) signed by Saudi Arabia and Pakistan in September 2025.
This pact treats any aggression against one member as an attack on all, mirroring NATO’s Article 5. The trilateral bloc, if materialized, would combine Saudi Arabia’s massive financial resources, Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal & large military, and Turkey’s geopolitical dominance, being NATO’s second-largest military contributor.
The potential “Islamic NATO” vision stems from Washington’s fluctuating policies, concerns over Iran, and overlapping interests in South Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.
If finalized, the alliance could seriously challenge and even threaten countries like India, Israel, Armenia, and Cyprus, among others.
Strong India-Israel Relations
India has not recognized Somaliland as an independent state, a position it reaffirmed by strongly backing Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity following Israel’s recognition.
This stance aligns with India’s longstanding commitment to the two-state solution for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which it continues to support through UN votes and diplomatic statements. Additionally, India maintains close strategic and economic ties with Iran, a key adversary of Israel.
Despite these differences on regional issues, India and Israel enjoy a very strong military and defense partnership, marked by extensive cooperation in technology, arms procurement, and counter-terrorism.
India’s Defence Acquisition Council recently approved an $8.7 billion procurement that included 1,000 SPICE missiles from Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems.
India is Israel’s biggest defence customer, accounting for 34 percent of all exports between 2020 and 2024.
India-Israel aerospace relations are strong and growing, focused on co-development and co-production of advanced defence systems, particularly drones (UAVs), missile systems (like Barak-8/MRSAM), and radars, aligning with India’s “Make in India” or “Atmanirbhar Bharat” initiatives, making Israel a top defence supplier and fostering indigenous Indian capabilities through significant technology transfers.
Among the key areas of collaboration are joint development of the Barak-8 MRSAM (Medium Range Surface-to-Air Missile) for land and naval forces, which is a major success story.
India uses Israeli drones (Heron, Searcher) and is upgrading them (Project Cheetah) with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), involving technology transfer for indigenous production.
There is collaboration on sophisticated radars (Phalcon AWACS), the EL/M-2052 AESA radar for the LCA, and strategic electronics, including jammers.
IAI is partnering with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to convert civilian aircraft into mid-air refuelers (MMTT). IAI is a major partner, establishing an Indian subsidiary (ASI) and collaborating on numerous projects. Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) formed a JV with IAI for lifecycle support of MRSAM systems.
Israel’s strong support during conflicts (e.g., the Kargil War) solidified bilateral ties.
A Joint Working Group (JWG) oversees and guides deepening cooperation, aiming for a ten-year roadmap. Israel is helping India strengthen its defence capabilities against aerial threats. It has clearly positioned itself as a trusted defence partner of India.
According to an international survey, Israelis like Indians the most. There is a ground swell of pro-Israel opinion in India, also as an all-weather friend. India established formal defence ties with Israel in 1996. Ever since, there has been no looking back.
Substantial action took place during the first NDA regime, and more recently, the body language between Prime Ministers Modi and Netanyahu has been extremely warm, with a desire to move forward.
Israel and India are poised to push ties further. Israel is also conscious of India’s desire to become independent amid drives such as ‘Make in India’. Unlike the US and Russia, which are sensitive to technology transfer, Israel is more willing to share up-end technology.
While the Service HQs continue to assess immediate requirements, such as additional UAVs, precision munitions, Phalcon radars for two additional AWACS, and support for India’s indigenous Ballistic Missile Defence, it is time to harness this friendship in India’s national interest.
Israel: Significant Aerospace Power
Continuous wars and heavy external threats forced Israel to have a big Military-Industrial Complex. A large number of companies in this otherwise small country, the size of Haryana, with a population (around 9.5-10 million) similar to that of the Indian metropolitan Hyderabad, are in the aerospace sector.
The Government-controlled Israeli defence companies are IAI and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, and the private sector Elbit Systems and Taldrin Group, all producing a wide range of conventional arms and advanced defence electronics.
IAI produces aerial and astronautic systems for both military and civilian usage. It has 15,000 employees, achieved record sales of $6.1 billion in 2024, and is 31st among the world’s top 100 arms producers (HAL 44th).
IAI designs, develops, produces, and maintains civil aircraft, UAVs, fighter aircraft, missiles, avionics, and space-based systems. Their main products include missile defence systems (Arrow, Barak, Iron Dome), UAVs/drones (Heron family), radar and electronic systems, satellites & space technology, special mission aircraft, and commercial aircraft services (conversions, components for business jets like Gulfstream).
Many of these products are centred on the core needs of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), but are also exported.
IAI UAVs, including the Heron, Panther, Bird Eye, Searcher, and Mosquito micro UAV, were deployed in Afghanistan and operated by India. Israel is also the only country in the world with a fully operational ground-based Theatre Ballistic Missile Defence system that uses the American Arrow anti-missile system.
Israeli company Elta, a subsidiary of IAI, provides the Green Pine early-warning radar for the system. Elta also makes radars and airborne jammers for Indian aircraft. Tadiran (Elbit division) makes the Communication, Control, and Command centre.
Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and IAI work closely on many systems. Rafael develops and produces advanced solutions for air, land, sea, space, and cyber defence, including well-known systems such as Iron Dome, David’s Sling, Iron Beam Laser, active protection (Trophy), precision weapons (Spike family), and integrated command systems.
Numerous militaries, including NATO members, use its systems, and it operates through subsidiaries and global cooperation.
Iron Dome is an all-weather mobile air defence system with a range of 70 kilometres, and played a significant role in Israel’s Gaza conflict, “Operation Protective Edge” of July 2014, and more recently in “Operation Swords of Iron”.
The system consists of Elta radar and Rafael’s interceptor missile, which achieved a 90 percent success rate against Hamas-fired rockets.
Rafael’s missiles include the Python and Derby air-to-air missiles; surface-to-air systems, including the Spyder and the Barak anti-missile naval air defence system developed jointly with IAI. Rafael also manufactures the Litening and TopLite navigation and targeting pods, and the RecceLite real-time reconnaissance pod.
Under a 2008 agreement, Rafael was awarded a contract to supply the IAF with Spyder Low-Level Quick Reaction Missile systems (LLQRM) armed with Python and Derby missiles.
In March 2010, the two countries signed a huge $1.4 billion contract for the development and procurement of Barak 8 medium-range surface-to-air missiles. Rafael today partners extensively with Indian firms such as Kalyani (KRAS), Astra Microwave (ARC), and L&T to localize the production of high-tech defence systems, including Spike missiles, SDRs, and the Trophy APS.
Elbit Systems Ltd is the primary provider of the Israeli military’s land-based equipment and unmanned aerial vehicles, with subsidiary factories around the world, and sells its products to various countries. It creates multiple technologies for military command, control, communications, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance purposes.
The company produces unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), electro-optic hardware, electronic warfare systems, signal intelligence (SIGINT) systems, and radio and communications products.
Elbit Hermes 450/900 is made in India through a joint venture with Adani Group. Elbit Systems had 20,000 employees, with 3,200 of them based in the United States. Elbit Systems reported $6.8 billion in revenue for the full year 2024 (HAL $4 billion).
India’s Israel Connect
India’s establishment of diplomatic relations with Israel in 1992 greatly helped Israel emerge as a significant global defence exporter.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) was the first to invest in the Israeli Air Combat Instrumentation in 1996. This was followed by Dvora patrol boats for the Indian Navy.
The Nationalist BJP-led NDA government in 1998 took the relationship to a new level.
Since then, India has purchased multiple military equipment from israel including Barak Naval anti-missile defence system, Phalcon advanced airborne early warning radars for India’s IL-76 based AWACs, Heron and Searcher Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), Night Vision Goggles, Spider quick-reaction surface-to-air missiles, smart munitions, Spice and Crystal Maze missiles, Green Pine early-warning and fire-control radars, and many other items like Laser guidance kits, Head-Up-Displays, targeting pods, PGM laser guidance kits, FLIR equipment, integrated helmets, among others.
IAF also acquired the Israeli Harpy and loitering Harop killer Loitering Munitions. Israel supports India’s indigenous AD systems development, including the Anti-Ballistic Missile system. Israel also supported India in space based sensors (RISAT), and intelligence.
Israeli Arms Sales
Israel is a major global arms exporter, ranking as the world’s 8th-largest exporter during 2020–2024. In the period 2020–2024, states in Asia and Oceania accounted for 33% of all arms imports globally.
India was the second-largest importer during this period, after Ukraine. Over the last decade (2014-2024), India significantly shifted its sourcing, reducing its reliance on Russia (from 72% to 36%) toward Western suppliers such as France, the US, and Israel.
In the period 2020–2024, Israel contributed nearly 15 percent of India’s defence imports. Israel has long been a global leader, often the top exporter, in military UAVs/drones due to early adoption, innovation, and necessity as a small nation with defence challenges, with major players like IAI and Elbit Systems dominating the market, though now facing rising competition from countries like Turkey.
Lessons From Israeli Dare-Devil Raids
The Israel Air Force, along with its commandos, has carried out many famous air raids such as the Entebbe counter-terrorist mission in Uganda (1976) and Operation Opera against Iraq’s Osirak nuclear reactor (1981).
“Operation Many Ways” on September 8, 2024, is when, in 3 hours, 120 elite Israeli forces raided and destroyed an alleged underground Iran-funded “Deep Layer” missile manufacturing facility in Syria.
Israeli airstrike on Iran’s consulate in Syria in April 2024 killed two generals and five other officers. Hamas Chief Haniyeh and his bodyguard were killed when an “airborne guided projectile” hit an exceptional residence for military veterans, in which he was staying, in northern Tehran in July 2024.
There is an unending list of operations. Each operation was carried out after obtaining actionable hard intelligence.
Success rates were very high. All successful operations involved extensive preparation, including mission rehearsals and dummy strikes on full-scale models and realistic targets. The world has a lot to learn from the planning and execution. So does India.
IAF’s Balakot airstrike against a Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terrorist training camp at Jaba Top near Balakot, Pakistan, in February 2019, and Op Sindoor had a semblance of the way Israel hits its adversaries.
I2U2
I2U2 is a strategic economic partnership among India, Israel, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and the United States, once known as the “New Quad” or “Middle East Quad”.
Established in 2022, it focuses on joint investments in areas like water, energy, transportation, space, health, and food security, leveraging the members’ technological strengths (Israel/US tech, India’s IT/human capital, UAE’s investment) to promote economic development, innovation, and regional stability.
During the “Trump-2” Administration, I2U2 has slowed a little as America tries to revive its economy by balancing its trade through heavy tariffs.
India and Israel have a bilateral framework agreement (Nov 2023) for Indian workers, mainly in construction, that offers fair pay, lodging, medical care, and social security, ensuring equal rights for Indian workers under structured contracts.
This government-facilitated system places Indian workers in Israel, often filling gaps left by Palestinians, providing better wages than in some GCC countries, with vetting by India’s National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC).
Workers enter through government channels or private recruitment, with the Indian Embassy monitoring welfare and addressing grievances such as skill mismatches.
To Summarise
India and Israel share a common stance on many geopolitical issues. While Israel is very close to the US, it is conscious of the pro-Palestinian positions and opposition to Israel of many European countries.
Israel maintains “practical” and balanced relations with both Russia and China. India hopes that the Israel-Gaza and other conflicts in the region do not continue for long. This is important for India’s uninterrupted defence supplies and defence partnership.
Israel has had a threat to its existence from the Arab nations surrounding it, who support the Palestinian cause. India now has three front threats from China, Pakistan, and now less-friendly and radicalised Bangladesh.
Multiple sources, including former CIA officers and declassified intelligence reports, detail an alleged plan in the 1980s, in which Israel offered to help India destroy Pakistan’s uranium enrichment facility at Kahuta.
Israel feared the development of an “Islamic bomb” and the potential proliferation of nuclear technology to hostile Middle Eastern countries like Libya.
More recently, Israel, Cyprus, and Greece have a strong, deepening trilateral strategic partnership focused on security, defence, energy (gas, electricity grid), and technology, often seen as a counterbalance to regional instability and Turkish assertiveness in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Turkey and Pakistan have been working very closely. India, too, is concerned about this nexus. India has also been working more closely with Greece and Cyprus. India and Israel could coordinate more closely in the Mediterranean.
The success of any military operation is heavily dependent on accurate intelligence. The Israeli Institute for Intelligence and Special Operations, popularly known as Mossad, is a world-acclaimed intelligence agency.
It has contributed significantly to the success of all Israeli military operations. India needs a near-equivalent but more robust setup. The continuous Israeli military training follows the dictum “the more you sweat in peace, the less you bleed in war.”
Expecting war at short notice, Israel keeps high weapon stockpiles and has secured supply chains. India has begun doing the same.
The world has a lot to learn from Israel on close combat in an urban environment, as has been especially evident in Gaza and South Lebanon. Israel has been practicing criticality of organic lethality and rapid engagements.
The ability to responsively employ precision fires in close proximity to friendly forces, and give higher priority to air-delivered fires. Israel believes in what Clausewitz taught students of strategy: war is not an end in itself. War is a means to an end, the application of organized violence to achieve geopolitical objectives.
Israel has had both intelligence and military failures and has constantly tried to learn from them and make amends. Israel has no illusions about a permanent resolution to the conflict. As has often been observed, eternal vigilance is the price of liberty. Israel believes in “Do plan for the day after.
“Iron Beam” is a 100kW-class High Energy Laser Weapon System (HELWS) that is expected to become the first operational system in its class. It quickly and effectively engages and neutralizes a wide array of threats from a range of hundreds of meters to several kilometres.
Engaging at the speed of light, Iron Beam has an unlimited magazine, with almost zero cost per interception, and causes minimal collateral damage. Iron Beam can be integrated with a range of platforms and can become part of any multilayer defence system. India should work with Israel on this.
Israeli SPICE glide vehicles were used for the Balakot strike. Harop LMs were extensively used in “Op Sindoor.” The Special Forces of the two countries work together and also use some similar equipment—the two work closely on cyber warfare equipment and software tools.
For India, Israel remains a very reliable, ‘no-questions-asked’ defence systems supplier. Joint Ventures are today the preferred route. India is a significant market. Make in India is cheaper and also fits into India’s “Atmanirbharta” thrust.
Future India-Israel defence cooperation will focus heavily on joint development, co-production, and technology transfer in cutting-edge areas like AI, cyber, and drones, shifting from buyer-seller to strategic partnership, solidified by recent MOUs for advanced systems like hypersonic defence, enhanced UAVs (Heron upgrades), and integrated defence ecosystems, aiming for self-reliance and enhanced operational capabilities against terrorism.
- Air Marshal Anil Chopra (Retired) is an Indian Air Force veteran, fighter test pilot, and ex-director-general of the Center for Air Power Studies. He has been decorated with gallantry and distinguished service medals during his 40-year tenure in the IAF.
- He tweets @Chopsyturvey
- Follow EurAsian Times on Google News
