Modi's Israel visit sharpens Pakistan security risk
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- Modi made his second visit to Israel — his first since 2017 — receiving a red-carpet welcome from Netanyahu, with an agenda spanning defence, AI, quantum computing, and cybersecurity
- A new classified framework is expected to open exports of previously restricted Israeli military hardware to India, including the 100kW Iron Beam laser weapon inducted into the Israeli army in December 2025 and Iron Dome technology for local manufacturing
- Netanyahu announced a proposed "hexagon of alliances" placing India at its center alongside Greece and Cyprus, framed to counter a "radical Shia axis" and an "emerging radical Sunni axis" — language analysts read as targeting Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkiye
- Former Pakistani ambassador Masood Khan warned the emerging India-Israel pact could serve as a counterpart to Pakistan's September 2025 Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement with Saudi Arabia
- Israeli drones were used against Pakistan during the four-day India-Pakistan aerial war in May 2025, former ambassador Masood Khalid noted, underscoring the operational stakes of deepened arms ties
- Pakistan's Gulf balancing is complicated by the UAE signing a strategic agreement with India in January 2026, while Pakistan pursues deeper ties with Saudi Arabia, Turkiye, Qatar, and Kuwait
- RAW-Mossad intelligence sharing dates back to the 1960s, and Israel attempted in the 1980s to recruit India for a joint strike on a Pakistani nuclear facility — context the current 'new embrace' framing obscures
Why it matters: Pakistan faces tightening encirclement as India's deepening arms ties with Israel — including Iron Beam laser and Iron Dome transfers — follow May 2025 combat in which Israeli drones struck Pakistan. With Netanyahu's 'hexagon' targeting Sunni-majority states allied with Islamabad, Pakistan must weigh whether its Saudi and Turkish pacts can offset India-Israel alignment while the UAE tilts toward New Delhi.
