“India lives in a shocking neighbourhood, very much like Israel. It is not easy being in such a neighbourhood. That is why Israel has stood steadfast by India during

and after the Mumbai terror attacks. We hardly even changed our travel advisory,” he said.

Talking about the commando operation in Mumbai, especially at the Nariman House in which Israeli citizens were killed by the attackers, Sofer tried to dispel the perception that his country was critical of the operation. “The operation by the Indian forces was nothing less than heroic. They staked their own lives for saving those of others. We have nothing but the highest praise and appreciation for them for the manner in which they carried out this extremely complicated and complex operation,” he said.

Sofer said because both the countries were in the same boat as far as threat from fundamentalist Islamist forces was concerned, there was a better understanding of each other both at the level of governments and general public.

“The determination not to let fundamentalist Islamist forces hold sway is common in both the countries. The Israeli embassy has been inundated with emails and letters of support after the Mumbai attacks. There is a justified revulsion at the kind of threat we face,” he said.