Netanyahu says India’s Modi to visit Israel Wednesday

OCCUPIED JERUSALEM: India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Israel on Wednesday, his counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu announced, saying the trip will help forge a new alliance to counter what he described as “radical” adversaries.

“On Wednesday, the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, will arrive here; he will deliver a speech in the Knesset,” Netanyahu said Sunday at the opening of a cabinet meeting, referring to Israel’s parliament.

The premier hailed growing ties between the two countries.

“The fabric of relations has grown tighter, and (Modi) is coming here so that we can tighten it even more,” he said, mentioning cooperation in the economic, diplomatic and security spheres.

Modi visited Israel as prime minister in 2017, before Netanyahu made a reciprocal visit to India the following year.

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Netanyahu said the Israel-India axis will be part of a wider regional alliance to counter common “radical” adversaries.

“In the vision I see before me, we will create an entire system, essentially a ‘hexagon’ of alliances around or within the Middle East,” the Israeli leader said.

“This includes India, Arab nations, African nations, Mediterranean nations (Greece and Cyprus), and nations in Asia that I won’t detail at the moment,” Netanyahu said, adding that he will further elaborate on his plan in the future.