The Hindu Business Line : Israel a reliable partner, says Sushma

JERUSALEM: Describing Left's opposition to India's strategic relationship with Israel as an extension of its 'anti-US' stance, senior BJP leader Ms Sushma Swaraj has said that the Jewish state was a 'reliable partner' and that the current Government ackn owledged it.

"The Left parties are basically anti-US and therefore all those countries which are seen as allies of Washington are disliked by them. They do not like whatever America does while we look at things on a case to case basis with regard to the United States ," Ms Swaraj, on a three-day visit to Israel as the chairperson of Indo-Israel Parliamentary Friendship Group, said.

"We are not anti-US in principle but we oppose its policies which are against India's interest. We do not oppose anything just because it is done by America," she said.

Ms Swaraj stressed that ruling Congress-led government had not compromised on the 'continuity in the foreign policy' with regard to ties with Israel despite pressures from Left.

Lauding Israel for "demonstrating its reliability during the Kargil war", the BJP leader said that India felt confident that its trust won't be let down.

"This is also one of the reasons why the current Government has not accepted the demands of the Left parties", she said, adding that the concerns of Communists could not be seen as 'legitimate'. - PTI

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