Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Israel on Wednesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed on Sunday.
Modi will speak at the Knesset, hold an innovation event in Jerusalem, and visit Yad Vashem, Netanyahu announced.
Netanyahu, speaking at a cabinet meeting, stated that focus will be placed this coming week on the "special relationship that has been forged over recent years between Israel and the global power that is India," the Prime Minister's Office announced.
Focus will also be placed on the relationship between Netanyahu and Modi, with Netanyahu referring to Modi as his "personal friend," and stating that they have spoken frequently on the phone, visiting each other. "We waded together in the waters of the Mediterranean, and much water has flowed since then in the Mediterranean, the Ganges, and the Jordan."
The countries will also "promote cooperation in high-tech, artificial intelligence, and quantum computing," the prime minister added, saying that AI and quantum are fields where Israel aims to be among the world's leading nations.
Netanyahu aiming to create 'hexagon' of allies across Middle East, Asia, including India
Netanyahu noted that his vision includes "creating an entire system, essentially a 'hexagon' of alliances around or within the Middle East, including India, Arab nations, African nations, Mediterranean nations (Greece and Cyprus), and nations in Asia that I won't detail at the moment," the pm said.
His intention is to "create an axis of nations that see eye-to-eye on the reality, challenges, and goals against the radical axes, both the radical Shia axis, which we have struck very hard, and the emerging radical Sunni axis," Netanyahu said.