Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to arrive in Israel on Wednesday for a two-day state visit that will take him from the tarmac at Ben-Gurion Airport to the halls of the Knesset, through a Jerusalem innovation showcase, and into the Hall of Remembrance at Yad Vashem.
It will be Modi’s first visit to Israel since his landmark 2017 trip – the first ever by a sitting Indian prime minister – and the schedule, released by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, is tightly packed. Here is what to expect.
Wednesday, February 25
12:45 p.m. – Welcoming ceremony, Ben-Gurion Airport
Netanyahu and his wife Sara will receive Modi in an official ceremony at the airport. The last time the two leaders met on Israeli soil was in July 2017, when Netanyahu greeted Modi on the tarmac in what was then an unprecedented moment in India-Israel relations. Netanyahu has since made a return visit to India in January 2018, but nearly nine years have passed without an Indian prime ministerial visit here.
1:00 p.m. – Meeting at the Fattal Lounge, Ben-Gurion Airport
Before heading to Jerusalem, the two leaders will sit down for an initial meeting at the airport. India’s Ambassador to Israel, J.P. Singh, told The Jerusalem Post that the leaders’ discussions are expected to be “very free-flowing” and will cover “bilateral, plus regional and global issues.” Singh described the personal relationship between the two leaders as “very warm, very friendly, very brotherly.” This initial sit-down is closed to press – official photographers only.
4:30 p.m. – Ceremony and address at the Knesset
This is the marquee event of the visit. Modi will become the first Indian prime minister to address Israel’s parliament. Previous world leaders to address the plenum include US presidents, the late Egyptian president Anwar Sadat, and most recently, US President Donald Trump and Argentine President Javier Milei. For India – a country of 1.4 billion people that maintained only limited diplomatic ties with Israel until 1992 – the address represents a striking marker of how far the relationship has come.
But the event is shadowed by a domestic political dispute. Opposition leader Yair Lapid has said his bloc will boycott the session after Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana declined to invite Supreme Court President Isaac Amit – breaking with parliamentary custom. Lapid has urged Netanyahu to intervene, writing on X that “we want to be in the session, we need to be in the session,” and warning that the opposition does not want Modi addressing a half-empty chamber. Lapid said the Indian embassy was “in a panic” over the situation.
Ohana fired back, calling the threatened boycott “an illegitimate weapon in a political struggle” and pointing out that the opposition attended addresses by Trump and Milei when Amit was also not invited. He has reportedly invited former Knesset members to fill any empty seats. Hebrew media outlet Ynet reported that Indian officials were weighing whether to cancel the speech altogether to avoid embarrassing optics, though no such decision has been announced.
As of Tuesday evening, the standoff remained unresolved.
6:00 p.m. – Innovation event, Waldorf Astoria Hotel, Jerusalem
The two leaders will tour a technology exhibition focused on areas where officials hope to deepen cooperation – principally artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and cybersecurity. Netanyahu flagged this event specifically at Sunday’s cabinet meeting, saying the two countries would promote joint work in these fields. “I say AI and quantum not because they are the future, but because they are the present,” he said. A joint cybersecurity center of excellence is among the initiatives expected to be announced during the visit. The event is closed to press.
7:30 p.m. – Dinner, King David Hotel, Jerusalem
Netanyahu and his wife will host Modi for a private dinner at the King David – the same hotel where the expanded bilateral meeting will take place the following morning. The choice of venue carries its own weight; the King David has hosted heads of state for decades and served as the backdrop for some of Israel’s most consequential diplomatic encounters. Official photographers only.
Thursday, February 26
9:00 a.m. – Yad Vashem, Hall of Remembrance
Modi and Netanyahu will visit Israel’s Holocaust memorial, where Modi is expected to lay a wreath in the Hall of Remembrance. Visits to Yad Vashem are a standard element of state visits to Israel, and Modi previously visited the memorial during his 2017 trip. India has a lesser-known connection to the Holocaust: several hundred Jewish refugees found shelter in India during World War II, and Indian soldiers served in British forces that helped liberate concentration camps in Europe.
11:00 a.m. – Expanded meeting and signing of agreements, King David Hotel
This is where the substance lands. The two leaders will hold an expanded bilateral meeting, after which agreements that have been negotiated in advance will be formally signed and exchanged, followed by joint statements.
Officials on both sides have been coy about specifics, but the broad strokes are visible. A classified defense framework agreement is expected to expand the categories of military cooperation open to India, with Israeli officials indicating it could include access to advanced air defense systems – potentially Israel’s laser-based Iron Beam platform. Israel’s Ambassador to India, Reuven Azar, told media the updated protocols “will allow us to work on more sensitive technology” and described the new framework as “broader, more sensitive, and timely.”
The defense relationship has already been growing fast. Forbes India reported earlier this month that Israel has agreed to arms deals with India worth approximately $8.6 billion this year, covering precision-guided munitions, air-to-surface missiles, and ballistic missile systems from Rafael, Elbit Systems, and Israel Aerospace Industries.
Beyond defense, agreements are expected across science and technology, agriculture, research and development, and financial cooperation. Ambassador Singh told the Post that the agreements would span “most different aspects” of the relationship. Israel’s cabinet approved a NIS 148 million ($40 million) plan ahead of the visit to strengthen ties in areas including academic exchange, agriculture, renewable energy, and the establishment of 10 new centers of excellence in India.
Both governments are also pushing toward a Free Trade Agreement. Azar said he expects one could be finalized within the year.
Pool coverage only for this event – TV by AFP, stills by SIPA – with entry limited to pre-registered correspondents.
2:00 p.m. – Departure ceremony, Ben-Gurion Airport
Modi’s visit ends where it began. An official departure ceremony at the airport will close the two-day trip. Open coverage, with entry from noon.
What it means
The visit is being framed by officials as an elevation of the relationship to “special strategic relations” – a designation Israel otherwise reserves for the United States and Germany. If the agreements signed at the King David match the rhetoric coming from both capitals, it would represent the most significant upgrade in India-Israel ties since the two countries established full diplomatic relations in 1992.
Singh, the Indian ambassador, put it simply: “This visit will give us a road map and a vision for our future relationship.”
Whether the Knesset address goes smoothly – or becomes a footnote to Israel’s judicial standoff – may be the first test of that vision.