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JERUSALEM, July 2 (AFP) - Israeli Foreign Minister David Levy denied reports Sunday that the United States demanded Israel cancel a planned sale of radar equipment to India. "This information has no foundation; there was no American request to this extent," Levy said at a press conference with his Indian counterpart Jaswant Singh, the first trip by an Indian foreign minister to Israel since the two countries established full diplomatic relations in 1992. "In any case, this type of cooperation between two democracies is going through in broad daylight and isn't directed against a third party," Levy said. The Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported Sunday that Washington had stopped Israel from selling India a radar system that could be used to spot Pakistan's ballistic missiles. The system is like the Phalcon AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control Systems), which Israel is considering selling to China despite US objections. Some members of the US Congress have threatened to yank $250 million in military aid to Israel, the price of the planes, if the deal goes through. For his part, Singh said, "India certainly doesn't judge bilateral relations between Israel and the People's Republic of China against the bilateral relations between us. Israel and India's relationship stands alone." Singh also said that Indian President K.R. Narayanan hoped to visit Israel early next year. Israeli President Ezer Weizman visited India in 1997. Singh announced the creation of a joint cooperation committee between the two countries' foreign ministries which will meet for talks once every year in both countries, accompanied by occasional meetings between national security officials. The Indian foreign minister was due to meet with Prime Minister Ehud Barak later in the day and Weizman on Monday. He met with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat on Saturday in the West Bank. New Delhi said in April that it planned to acquire Israeli aerial surveillance drones to bolster its defenses along a military control line with arch foe Pakistan in the bitterly disputed territory of Kashmir. Last August, Haaretz reported that Israel had stepped up arms deliveries to India amid rising tensions between New Delhi and Islamabad. The head of India's army, General Prakash Malik, traveled to Israel in 1998, one year after the countries exchanged military attaches. Trade between India and Israel accounted for 994.5 million dollars in 1999, about 46 percent more than the year before. |
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