00:00How has the global community reacted to Modi engaging with Netanyahu,
00:07given that he had actually condemned the October the 7th attack?
00:12So it's quite an interesting moment because he's also faced criticism at home, Modi.
00:18Yeah, I mean, he was one of the first world leaders to condemn the Hamas attack,
00:22which in itself, Indian foreign policy has changed
00:27because up until Modi came to power,
00:30they had been, as a nation, very much sympathetic to the Palestinian cause, if you like.
00:36And Modi has much more been sympathetic to Israel.
00:40And, you know, whilst they still continue to officially support the two-state solution,
00:45there has been no mention of it since the conflict began on October the 7th.
00:50There's been no call for restraint.
00:52In fact, there has just been a deepening and a strengthening of their relationship.
00:55Unsurprisingly, that is controversial in the light of what we know has unfolded in Gaza.
01:01I mean, the International Criminal Court have an arrest warrant out for Benjamin Netanyahu.
01:05And there are, of course, people at home who are unsupportive in India of Modi's position.
01:12But it also has concerned Pakistan, because we know that the reason India is spending so much on intelligence sharing
01:22and strategic weaponry, particularly around military hardware, billion a year, I believe, from Israel,
01:29this sort of Iron Dome technology, is because they had this short war with Pakistan last May.
01:35So Pakistan sees this as a threat to their security, this meeting an ongoing escalation, really, in terms of their
01:42relationship.
01:43But also, you know, you've got the United Nations, where we have been historically used to seeing India
01:49siding with those who have criticised Israel for humanitarian breaches, for overstepping the mark.
01:56And that has materially changed with Modi in power.
02:00And this is just a further demonstration of that strengthening relationship, really.
02:05You know, and it looks as though, certainly I would say, under the Trump administration,
02:09that, you know, Netanyahu's position has become less of a pariah.
02:15I mean, it's been a whole journey, hasn't it?
02:17Obviously, there was the initial condemnation after October the 7th,
02:19but there's been this sort of consensus, hasn't there, largely that they've gone too far,
02:24one that I don't think Trump shares, and clearly Modi doesn't either.
Comments