Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached war-torn Kyiv on Friday to meet Ukraine President Zelenskiy. This is the first trip by an Indian PM to Ukraine since Kyiv gained independence after the break-up of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Modi’s visit to Kyiv comes at a crucial time in the Russia-Ukraine war. The Ukrainian forces are still in Russia’s Kursk, following their incursion on Aug. 6. On the other hand, Russian troops are also making slow but steady advances in Ukraine’s east.
Modi’s visit to Kyiv comes a month after his trip to Moscow in July. The trip is important for Kyiv, which is looking to establish diplomatic relations in the Global south, in addition to the western powers.
Reached Kyiv earlier this morning. The Indian community accorded a very warm welcome. pic.twitter.com/oYEV71BTlv
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) August 23, 2024
On arriving at Kyiv, Modi said he was looking forward to sharing “perspectives on peaceful resolution of the ongoing Ukraine conflict”.
India has publicly criticised the deaths of innocent people in the war. However, it has traditionally held close economic and defence ties with Moscow.
Indian refiners which rarely bought Russian oil in the past, emerged as Moscow’s top clients for sea-borne oil cashing in on discounts offered by Moscow. This took place since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Russian oil currently accounts for over two-fifths of India’s oil imports.
Peace Vision
Ukraine said it hopes to bring together a second international summit later this year and involve representatives from Russia.
The first summit in Switzerland that pointedly excluded Russia in June attracted scores of delegations. It also excluded China, the world’s second largest economy but included India.
“Lasting peace can only be achieved through options that are acceptable to both parties. And it can only be a negotiated settlement,” Tanmaya Lal, Secretary (West) in the Indian foreign ministry, told reporters.
Volodymyr Fesenko, a Kyiv-based political analyst, said he expected no breakthrough proposals to be made to end the war during the trip by Modi.
With Reuters inputs
