Press Trust of India/Agence-France Presse Posted online: Thursday, September 19, 2002 at 1532 hours IST
Jerusalem, September 19: A high-ranking Indian Defence Ministry delegation held talks with Israeli Defence Minister Binyamin Ben Eliezer amid growing military ties between the two countries, an official said on Thursday.
The delegation, headed by India's Defence Secretary Subir Datta, arrived in Israel on Tuesday, and was also set to meet with Chief of Staff Moshe Yaalon.
Relations between the two countries, notably in the area of military cooperation, have been boosted in the last few years, with trade between them totaling some one billion dollars a year.
Israel has become India's second main supplier of military equipment, and the two are currently looking at proposals to further increase the trade, experts cited in Israel's Haaretz newspaper said.
Israel has been negotiating to sell India anti-missile systems based on the technology of the Arrow developed with the US, and has signed contracts for missiles and radar equipment.
During a visit to India in January, Foreign Minister Shimon Peres said Israel was ready to give India full support in its "fight against terrorism", at a time of heightened tension between India and Pakistan.
Experts cited in the Israeli press said relations between the two countries have improved because they both see themselves as threatened by Muslim extremists.
