Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday held separate phone calls with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy and discussed means to strengthen India's relationship with their respective countries.
In a telephonic conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi ensured India's wholehearted support to find a peaceful solution to Kyiv's ongoing conflict with Russia. On his part, Zelenskyy appreciated "India's continued humanitarian assistance for the people of Ukraine," a PIB release said on Wednesday evening. The two leaders also discussed plans and strategies to further strengthen the relationship between India and Ukraine in various spheres, the report added.
The phone call happened ahead of the Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba's visit to New Delhi. According to reports, Kuleba will visit India next week as Kyiv looks to build support for its peace plan.
Had a good conversation with President @ZelenskyyUa on strengthening the India-Ukraine partnership. Conveyed India’s consistent support for all efforts for peace and bringing an early end to the ongoing conflict. India will continue to provide humanitarian assistance guided by…
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 20, 2024
"While discussing the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, PM reiterated India’s people-centric approach and called for dialogue and diplomacy as the way forward. He highlighted that India supports all efforts for an early and peaceful resolution of all issues between the Parties. He added that India would continue to do everything within its means to support a peaceful solution. The two leaders agreed to remain in touch," the release read.
The release was published almost three hours after a similar statement confirmed PM Modi's interaction with Zelenskyy's Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. The Indian PM congratulated Putin for another successful election campaign before discussing matters of bilateral and global importance.
PM Modi discussed the invasion with Putin and emphasised India's "consistent position in favour of dialogue and diplomacy as the way forward," the statement said.
"The two leaders agreed to make concerted efforts towards further strengthening the Special & Privileged Strategic Partnership between the two countries in the years to come. They also reviewed progress in various issues of bilateral cooperation, and exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest," the release read.
Spoke with President Putin and congratulated him on his re-election as the President of the Russian Federation. We agreed to work together to further deepen and expand India-Russia Special & Privileged Strategic Partnership in the years ahead. @KremlinRussia
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 20, 2024
Kyiv's peace plan calls for the withdrawal of all Russian troops from Ukraine, restoring the country's 1991 post-Soviet borders and a process to make Russia accountable for its actions. Apart from talks with Indian officials, Kuleba is also set to "review the India-Ukraine inter-governmental commission", an Indian official to Reuters, referring to a panel charged with keeping up the two nations' economic, cultural and technological ties.
Ukraine has also pitched for New Delhi to help rebuild its war-ravaged economy, inviting investment from Indian companies at a January business summit in India. Kuleba's visit will come about two weeks after Andriy Yermak, the head of the Ukrainian president's office, spoke to India's National Security Adviser Ajit Doval on March 15.Modi has spoken several times to the leaders of both Ukraine and Russia, having met Zelenskiy last May on the sidelines of a G7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan.
India has insisted on the need for both sides to talk, with Modi telling Putin during a meeting in September 2022 that this is not an era of war
