Fight against terror brings three West Asian rivals to Delhi

The UPA government on Friday staged a diplomatic coup by hosting and inking agreements with three warring nations — Iran, Saudi Arabia and Israel.  

Indian interlocutors had a tough day as they had to shuttle between various locations to hold bilateral talks with leaders from the same region: Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran’s foreign minister, and Yitzhak Aharonovich, Israel’s minister for public security.

Sharing intelligence, cooperating to stabilise Afghanistan and fighting terrorism were some of the issues discussed with the three countries.  

Though reports from West Asia suggest that Saudis and Israelis have over the years shared intelligence and discussed ways to contain Iranian influence over the region, experts here believe it will take time to build a Saudi-Israel-India axis.

Israeli diplomats at North Block here signed a number of agreements with home ministry officials on cooperation in legal assistance and public and homeland security.

India secured a commitment from Iran — the country would not pursue its nuclear goals.

As the Saudi prince concluded his three-day trip on Friday, he inked a defence cooperation pact that will allow exchange of defence-related information, military training and education and cooperation in areas varying from hydrography and security to logistics.