India, Israel launch tech fund to further business ties

Aims to spur Indian firms to open development centres in Israel, invest in their tech ecosystem

India and Israel on Wednesday launched a five-year technology fund, reminiscent of a fund that boosted the Jewish state’s ties with the US over four decades, and agreed to holds talks for an investment protection treaty in a bid to boost trade and business ties.

A joint statement, issued during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Israel, identified start-ups as among areas for boosting bilateral ties. The two nations agreed to put $4 million a year for five years into the Israel-India Innovation Initiative Fund, or I4F, said the statement issued after Modi’s talks with his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu.