In sign of bolstered ties, Rivlin to visit India next week

President Reuven Rivlin is to travel to India for an official visit next week, his office said Wednesday in a sign of increasingly close relations between the two countries.

Rivlin was invited by his Indian counterpart Pranab Mukherjee “in order to strengthen the cooperation and the fruitful relations between the two countries,” a statement from Rivlin’s office said.

It follows a visit by Mukherjee last year to Israel.

Indian media reported that the trip was likely to pave the way for a historic first visit of an Indian prime minister to Israel.

During the week-long visit starting November 14, Rivlin will meet with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj, and other Indian leaders.

He is scheduled to open Agro Tech, India’s largest agriculture technology and business conference, which will take place in the northern Indian city of Chandigarh.

Rivlin will also travel to Mumbai, where he will meet with representatives of India’s small Jewish community, and visit the Chabad House in the city, where six people, including Chabad envoys Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg, were killed during the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

Diplomatic and military relations between Israel and India have flourished in recent years, especially since Modi came to power two years ago.

Next year will mark 25 years of diplomatic ties between the two countries. However, India has been careful to largely keep these relations low-key due to its large Muslim majority and its historic support for the Palestinians.