(Bloomberg) -- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi signaled his backing for Ukrainian sovereignty within its internationally recognized borders even as he stood by his call for a diplomatic resolution to Russia’s war with the nation.
The comments, made during the Indian leader’s first visit to Kyiv since the war began, were among his most direct statements on the fallout of Russia’s full-scale invasion 2 1/2 years ago. Even as Ukraine has sought India’s support in driving back Russian aggression, Modi has refrained from criticizing the Kremlin’s attack.
“I want to assure you and the world of India’s respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Modi told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy during their meeting, which lasted well longer than scheduled. “Solutions can be found through dialog and diplomacy — and we must move in that direction with both sides with no time to waste,” he said.
Modi’s arrival — the first by an Indian premier to Ukraine since its 1991 independence amid the collapse of the Soviet Union — follows his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin last month. Belying the frustration among Ukrainian officials, the Indian and Ukrainian leaders embraced during the visit and Zelenskiy showed Modi an exhibit of children killed in the war.
Two months ago, India was among nations at a June summit meeting in Switzerland that didn’t sign a final statement, a blow to Ukraine’s bid to broaden global support. On Friday, Zelenskiy expressed his hope that India will sign on to the communique.
Looking Putin in the Eye
As the West has expressed outrage over Russia’s attack on its neighbor, India has been among nations of the Global South that’s sought to maintain political and economic links with Moscow, which supplies India with cheap oil and weapons.
Modi’s Moscow visit last month irked US officials — Zelenskiy called it a major blow to peace efforts — particularly since it occurred on the same day that a deadly Russian missile strike hit a children’s hospital in Kyiv.
Modi said that he spoke to Putin — “looking him in the eye” — during the visit to the Russian capital and told him that “this is not the era for war.”
“I spoke my mind clearly that the solution to any problem cannot be found on the battlefield,” Modi said in Kyiv.
Still, Modi didn’t express a commitment to Ukraine’s peace blueprint, which aims to mount a global front to exert pressure on Russia to accede to Kyiv’s demands, including full withdrawal from Ukrainian territory.
Along with other nations that didn’t sign onto the Swiss summit statement in June, Modi has maintained that a successful peace framework can only include Russia — which has not been included in Kyiv’s agenda.
Along with a visit to Poland this week, Modi’s visit sought to balance ties with the West. Although the Indian leader had no intention of playing the role of a formal mediator, he agreed to relay messages between the warring parties, Bloomberg reported this week.
--With assistance from Daryna Krasnolutska and Volodymyr Verbianyi.
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
