PM’s Visit to Israel Reflects Policy Continuity, Says Khaleed Naveed

Mahabubnagar: Khaleed Naveed, President of Youth Welfare Mahbubnagar, stated that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent visit to Israel should be viewed as a continuation of India’s long-standing West Asia policy rather than a sudden strategic shift.

Referring to PM's recent visit to Isreal should not be taken into a wrong context, in a press statement, Khaleed Naveed noted that India established full diplomatic relations with Israel in 1992. Since then, cooperation between the two countries has steadily expanded across key sectors including defense, agriculture, technology, and counterterrorism. He emphasized that although the visibility of the relationship has increased in recent years, its foundation was laid decades ago and has been strengthened by successive governments.

At the same time, he underlined that closer engagement with Israel should not be interpreted as a departure from India’s traditional support for the State of Palestine. India has historically backed the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and supported the two-state solution in international forums, he said. While national interests, defense cooperation, and technological partnerships are important, India must also uphold principles of justice and human rights.

Khaleed Naveed further observed that balance and strategic autonomy remain the core pillars of India’s West Asia policy. In managing relations with Israel, Gulf nations, or Iran, India’s primary objective should be safeguarding its national interests without entering into unconditional alignment with any particular country.

Concluding his statement, he said that as a responsible global power, India must pursue pragmatic and strategic partnerships while remaining committed to peace, justice, and respect for international law. He asserted that expanding ties with Israel may be practical, but India’s principled position on Palestine should remain firm and consistent.