134 recognition without relationsforeign ministry, a few months after Eytan’s visit testifi es to this. Lament-
ing on the situation, Menon informed Eytan that he was “very sorry that
the exchange of Missions between India and Israel has not yet taken
place.... I shall do all I can from this end, as I am really keen that we
should establish a Mission in Israel without further delay.”^156
Indian diplomats proved to be a source of information for Israel re-
garding the Middle East. Such contacts fi lled Israel’s information gaps
regarding Arab countries and inter- Arab rivalry. One such lengthy ren-
dezvous took place at the British countryside residence of the veteran
historian Captain Basil Liddell Hart on September 6, 1953. He hosted
Israel’s ambassador in London, Elath, and India’s ambassador in Cairo,
Panikkar.^157 Similarly, Jha briefed his Israeli counterpart in Ankara about
the activities and discussions surrounding the visit of Arab League Sec-
retary General Azzam Pasha to Turkey in June 1951.^158 Such meetings
also enhanced India’s understanding of the Middle East and Israel’s ex-
periences with its Western allies. In the absence of offi cial Indian docu-
ments, it is impossible to quantify and substantiate the benefi ts accrued
to India through its diplomatic contacts with Israel in third countries.
Such extensive contacts, especially during the Nehru years, indicate
the level of warmth between the two countries. These contacts were
regular and periodic; they include interactions between Abba Eban and
B. N. Rau in New York, Eliahu Elath and Vijayalakshmi Pandit in Wash-
ington and later in London, and Eliahu Sasson Sr. and C. S. Jha in Ankara.
Moreover, personal contacts between Elath and Panikkar and Eytan and
K. P. S. Menon Sr. continued even when they were no longer posted in
the same capitals. Indian delegates to the United Nations such as Shiva
Rao, Kitty Shiva Rao, Amiya Chakraborthy, and Sucheta Kripalani main-
tained contacts with Israeli personalities. There was also a surprisingly
long meeting between Foreign Minister Dinesh Singh and his Israeli
counterpart Abba Eban in October 1969. The meeting, which took place
in New York, came shortly after the Rabat fi asco, when India unsuccess-
fully tried to attend the Islamic summit.^159
Besides these connections, there were a number of bilateral visits even
when both countries lacked formal ties. Most of these visits in the pre-
1992 period are shrouded in secrecy, and a comprehensive list is impos-
sible to compile. In March 1953, when Nehru was contemplating normali-
zation, four se nior state- government offi cials were sent “to study the
Israeli cooperative system of agriculture and marketing.”^160 In 1960, the
Indian lawmaker and Nehru’s former cabinet colleague Amrit Kaur