Latest news with #JPSingh
Time of India
6 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Netanyahu meets Indian envoy: Focus on security, economy; talks held amid US tariff pressure
NEW DELHI: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday met with India's ambassador to Israel, J P Singh, to discuss deepening cooperation between the two nations, particularly in the areas of security and economic partnership. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The meeting took place at Netanyahu's office in Jerusalem and underscored the continuing strategic engagement between New Delhi and Tel Aviv. According to a post shared by the Israeli Prime Minister's office on social media, they "discussed the expansion of bilateral cooperation, especially on security and economic issues." N o additional details were shared by either side on specific outcomes or agreements. India, Israel eye relief from US tariffs The meeting comes at a time when both India and Israel are working to navigate tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump. India is currently subject to tariffs of at least 50 per cent from the US due to its continued purchase of Russian oil, according to the president. Meanwhile, the US has levied a 15 per cent tariff on imports from Israel, which came into effect on Thursday. Israel had initially pushed for a reduction in the tariff rate and has since indicated that the revised rate "reflects positive dialogue." "The tariff rate set by the US for Israel is at the lower end among countries with a trade deficit with the US, and it is lower than the rate set for Israel on April 2," the Finance Ministry said, reported The Jerusalem Post.
Hans India
18-07-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
Bihar: Former ADGP JP Singh, Bhojpuri star Ritesh Pandey join Jan Suraj Party
Patna: With the Bihar Assembly elections approaching, the trend of leaders switching parties has begun, and Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraj Party has received a significant boost. On Friday, former senior IPS officer JP Singh and Bhojpuri superstar-singer Ritesh Pandey formally joined the Jan Suraj party in the presence of the party's chief Prashant Kishor. JP Singh, former Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Himachal Pradesh, and a resident of Saran (Chhapra), recently took voluntary retirement (VRS) from police service before entering politics. Former IPS JP Singh's entry signals credibility and administrative experience in the party's leadership team. "I was keeping an eye on Jan Suraj ever since it was formed as a political party in Bihar. It is committed to the development of Bihar, and its leader, Prashant Kishor, is a visionary person,' Singh said. Ritesh Pandey is a popular Bhojpuri film actor and singer with a strong youth following across Bihar and Purvanchal. Bhojpuri superstar Ritesh Pandey's entry is expected to help Jan Suraj connect with the youth and cultural voters in Bhojpuri-speaking regions. 'I am inspired by the ideology of Prashant Kishor and hence I joined the party,' Pandey said. The joining of these two will boost the Jan Suraj party at the ground level. Earlier, YouTuber Manish Kashyap, who left the BJP, and former IPS Anand Mishra, who contested the Lok Sabha elections from Buxar, also joined Jan Suraj Party, indicating growing traction among youth, former officers, and influencers. Jan Suraj Party, founded by election strategist Prashant Kishor, is gearing up to contest all 243 Assembly seats in Bihar. The party received 'school bag' as an election symbol from the Election Commission and is positioning itself as an alternative to the NDA and the Grand Alliance. Prashant Kishor is focusing on presenting Jan Suraj Party as a credible, grassroots alternative in Bihar, leveraging his political acumen and public outreach to build a new narrative against traditional parties. 'Jan Suraj Party gives priority to such people who have come out of Bihar and have achieved something big on their own. The two people who have joined the party today are those who have achieved something big due to their hard work,' Kishor said. With the elections drawing closer, Prashant Kishor is intensifying organisational expansion to project Jan Suraj Party as a serious challenger in the 2025 Bihar Assembly elections.
Arab News
08-07-2025
- Business
- Arab News
Israel eyes deeper economic ties with India, finalizing investment protection deal
JERUSALEM: Israel and India are finalizing an investment protection agreement and expect to sign it in the coming months, Israel's Finance Ministry said on Tuesday. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and the ministry's chief economist Shmuel Abramzon discussed the issue, which it did not elaborate on, and other economic matters with Indian Ambassador to Israel J.P. Singh. 'Deepening economic ties with India is one of the goals I have set,' Smotrich said after the meeting in Jerusalem, calling India a 'true friend of Israel.' An investment protection agreement is a treaty in which countries aim to reduce the perceived risk of investing in each other, such as by offering protections against unfair treatment or removing restrictions on transferring capital and profits. India, the ministry noted, has become in recent years one of Israel's most important trade partners globally and especially in Asia, and the volume of trade and investments between the two countries is expected to increase sharply in the coming years in light of their strengthening diplomatic and security relations. Bilateral trade between India and Israel in 2024 came to almost $4 billion. 'In recent years, we have witnessed a strengthening of economic ties between us, including in the fields of defense exports and infrastructure,' Smotrich said. 'The potential for further strengthening our economic cooperation is immense. It can leverage our shared technological capabilities, India's demographic scale, and the geo-strategic position of both countries.'
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First Post
20-06-2025
- Politics
- First Post
Who is JP Singh, India's envoy to Israel, MEA's ‘go-to' diplomat in times of crisis?
Jitendra Pal (JP) Singh took over the post of India's Ambassador to Israel in January during a ceasefire between the Jewish country and Hamas in Gaza. Just months down the line, he is overseeing New Delhi's efforts to evacuate its citizens from Israel as tensions mount between the West Asian country and Iran. Recently, Singh came to the limelight after Netflix's movie, The Diplomat, portrayed the high-profile rescue mission of Uzma Ahmed in Pakistan. The case was handled by Singh read more JP Singh is India's Ambassador to Israel as New Delhi begins evacuation of its nationals from the West Asian country. X/@IsraelinIndia India's Ambassador to Israel is in the spotlight again. As military tensions escalate between Israel and Iran, New Delhi has launched Operation Sindhu to evacuate its nationals from the two warring countries in West Asia. As India rescues its citizens from Israel, India's envoy in Tel Aviv – Jitendra Pal (JP) Singh – is at the centre of it all. Under him, India is navigating the Iran-Israel conflict, which has caused turmoil in West Asia. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Singh was recently the subject of Netflix's The Diplomat starring John Abraham. The movie is based on the high-profile Uzma Ahmed rescue case in Pakistan, which was handled by him. Who is the Indian diplomat? We take a look. Who is JP Singh? JP Singh, a 2002 batch Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer, is currently serving as India's Ambassador to Israel. His appointment came in January this year at a crucial time, during Israel and Hamas' ceasefire in Gaza. Singh replaced Sanjeev Singla, who is the Indian Ambassador to Paris. His tenure as Indian Ambassador in Tel Aviv is significant for bilateral defence and trade ties between the two countries. Singh was sent to Israel at a time when Indian workers are increasingly going to work in Israel. The West Asian country is home to more than 32,000 Indian nationals. As Iran and Israel's conflict intensifies, Singh is again India's point-person for managing a crisis on foreign soil. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD MEA's top pick for Iran, Afghanistan JP Singh has held several big posts at the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). He has served in Russia, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Turkey. The diplomat was the joint secretary in the key Pakistan-Afghanistan-Iran (PAI) division of the MEA. Last year, Singh was responsible for maintaining a balance between India's relationship with Iran and its regional rival, Israel, as they traded missiles. He also steered high-level engagements between India and Iran when Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Amir Abdollahian died, reported The Hindu. Singh was posted in Kabul as the first secretary between 2008 and 2012. During his tenure, he dealt with the aftermath of two suicide attacks by the Taliban on the Indian Embassy in 2008 and 2009. After the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in 2021, Singh went to Kabul to meet Taliban Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani, leader of the Haqqani network behind the attacks on the Indian Embassy and consulates in Afghanistan. Last November, he held talks with the Taliban's Acting Defence Minister, Mullah Mohammad Yaqoob, to expand ties between India and Afghanistan. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The Administrator of National Defense Ministry met with a Delegation from India. The defense ministry's administrator, Mawlawi Mohammad Yaqoob 'Mujahid' at his office today, met with an Indian delegation, headed by... — د ملي دفاع وزارت - وزارت دفاع ملی (@MoDAfghanistan2) November 6, 2024 His meeting is seen to have cleared the path for Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri's talks with the Taliban regime's Acting Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi in Dubai in January. JP Singh's hard talk with Pakistan Singh was India's deputy high commissioner to Pakistan between 2014 and 2019. He managed tensions between the two countries for a decade, including seeing a brief thaw in October 2024 when Jaishankar travelled to Islamabad for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Heads of Government meeting. After India launched Operation Sindoor in May to avenge the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, Singh told Pakistan to hand over the dreaded terrorists operating from its soil. In an interview with Israel's i24NEWS last month, Singh said that the 'new normal' is India's offensive strategy against terrorism. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'The ceasefire is still holding on but we have made it very clear that Operation Sindoor is paused. It's not yet over,' the Indian Ambassador to Israel said, adding that the fight against terrorism will continue. He pointed out that India has taken a new stance. 'We have set a new normal and the new normal is that we will follow an offensive strategy. Wherever terrorists are we have to kill those terrorists and we have to destroy their terrorist infrastructure.' Singh said that 'ceasefire is intact' for now. He also called on Pakistan to hand over high-profile terrorists, including Hafiz Saeed, Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, and Sajid Mir. Singh talks from experience as he has overseen the fallout of the Pathankot and Uri terror attacks. When he was the Joint Secretary (IPA), India and Pakistan clashed over the 2019 Pulwama attacks. They suspended trade ties and recalled High Commissioners after the abrogation of Article 370. Singh also supervised discussions to build the Kartarpur corridor for Sikh pilgrims, as per The Hindu. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In Pakistan, Singh led the diplomatic rescue mission of Indian national Uzma Ahmed in 2017 after she was forced into a marriage at gunpoint. Netflix's movie The Diplomat revolves around the case, capturing Singh's skills while taking on a high-stakes mission. With inputs from agencies
News18
19-06-2025
- Politics
- News18
Handled The Taliban, Survived Bombings, Rescued Uzma: JP Singh, 'The Diplomat', Is In Tel Aviv
Under IFS officer JP Singh's command in Israel, India is evacuating students and citizens while continuing with diplomatic and strategic decisions in the middle of missile fire Bombs in Kabul, missiles in Tel Aviv, and complexities in Islamabad – when diplomacy demands nerves of steel, India turns to one man. JP Singh, a 2002-batch IFS officer currently at the helm in Tel Aviv, is navigating the ongoing conflict as India's Ambassador to Israel. Under his command in Israel, India is steering evacuations of its students and citizens while also continuing with diplomatic and strategic decisions in the middle of all the missile fire. While the US is reportedly preparing to evacuate some of its embassy personnel as the conflict escalates, the Indian mission is actively working to assist all citizens in leaving the area. Known for his skills and composure while operating in high-risk zones, JP Singh has now become India's go-to crisis manager on foreign soil. His calm under fire first came into public view during the high-profile Uzma Ahmed rescue case in Pakistan, a mission so gripping that it inspired the recent OTT release – 'The Diplomat' – in which John Abraham plays a character based on him. Singh has been appointed the 10th ambassador of India to Israel, a position that was held by Shivshankar Menon, who later became the national security adviser (NSA) for then prime minister Manmohan Singh. He was appointed Indian ambassador in Tel Aviv earlier this year after serving as the chief of staff to the external affairs minister (EAM) for a year. NO STRANGER TO CONFLICT According to a senior IFS officer, Singh is among the senior diplomats who initiated dialogue with the Taliban and met their foreign minister after they took over Kabul. This was the first official interaction between India and the government led by the Taliban in Kabul. A GLORIOUS CINEMATIC INTERPRETATION Some of Singh's diplomatic manoeuvring became the subject of a gripping cinematic interpretation – The Diplomat (2025), a movie that offers a slick yet intense look into the life of an officer who often operates in the eye of the storm and on foreign soil. The film does not only glorify him, but also attempts to decode the method behind his composure, the mind behind the missions, and also the meaning of modern-day Indian diplomacy. In Kabul, he played another crucial behind-the-scenes role in cementing India's outreach to key stakeholders during the fragile phase before and after the Taliban's return. In Islamabad, too, his tenure was marked by astute negotiation, deep intelligence and strategic liaison, while focusing on careful diplomatic messaging during a particularly tense phase in Indo-Pakistan relations. Now, as tensions flare in Israel, Singh has once again stepped up. However, it is more of a field job for him and about ensuring the safety and evacuation of Indian citizens and students caught in the crossfire. First Published: June 19, 2025, 20:22 IST
