Two Nobel laureates were among a delegation of leading British scientists who arrived in Israel this week for the first meeting of the UK-Israel Life Sciences Council.
Professors Sir John Walker and Sir Aaron Klug, who both won the Nobel Prize for chemistry, and Baroness Greenfield, are among the 12 British scientists taking part.
The nine Israelis also include two Nobel winners, Professor Ada Yonath of the Weizmann Institute and Professor Aaron Ciechanover, of the Haifa Technion, who also won their prizes for chemistry.
British Ambassador to Israel Matthew Gould, who launched the council, said: "The British government is opposed to boycotts of Israel, and this Council is an expression of that."