'Suspend India, Israel military ties'

NEW DELHI: After pressing the government to halt the nuclear deal, the CPI(M) on Saturday demanded suspension of strategic and military ties with Israel till it comes to the negotiating table for resolution of the Palestine issue.

CPI(M) General Secretary Prakash Karat said his party has a "serious problem" with New Delhi continuing its strategic alliance with Israel.

"We are having a real strategic alliance with Israel. This kind of strategic alliance is not even with the US.

"The present UPA Government will not move an inch against this alliance which was forged in the early 1990s. This is a serious problem for us," Karat said at a seminar "Annapolis: Talks for a Truncated Palestine" here.

He said India is "actually becoming an ally of the US now. That is a reality and it is because of the alliance it has with Israel.

"We demand the stopping of at least security and military collaboration with Israel till it comes to the negotiating table and arrive at a reasonable settlement with Palestine," Karat said. He said the Left parties are "isolated" on the matter as both the ruling Congress and opposition BJP were on the same side.

"Congress began the process and NDA furthered the ties," the Marxist leader said, adding both the parties share common stand on the matter.

Referring to the Indo-US civil nuclear deal, he said there was widespread public support for his party's views on the issue as well as other foreign policy matters both in rural and Hindi-belt areas of the country.