NewsGate Press Network

By Vineet Dikshit

In the backdrop of Russian-Ukrainian conflict which still continues unabatedly, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting Kiev later this week to meet Mr Zelenskyy, the President of Ukraine.

Modi-Zelenskyy meeting has been scheduled for Friday the 23rd of August.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in Ukraine just for one day while travelling back to India from Poland where he will be staying there for two days beginning on 21st of August 2024.

It may be recalled that during prime minister’s visit to Moscow on July 8th and 9th, the Ukrainian president Mr Zelenskyy made some nasty and harsh statements against Modi in his social media posts.

On Monday while briefing reporters about the itinerary of PM’s Poland-Ukraine visit, Ministry of External Affairs Secretary West, Mr Tanmaya Lal, declined to comment on any comparisons that could be made between this visit and Modi’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

He said that India’s relationship with Ukraine is “substantive and independent” (of ties with Moscow).

“This relationship has been substantive and independent; these are broad ties. The partnerships (with Moscow and Kiev) stand on their own; it is not a zero sum game,” Tanmaya Lal said while adding that when PM Modi travelled to Russia the two leaders discussed many ideas.

To questions on any peace plan that the PM would be presenting, the official reiterated India’s stand.

“The Ukrainian conflict is ongoing, and we have said that any resolution can come only through dialogue and diplomacy. PM Modi has also said that this is not the time for war, and a solution cannot be found on the battlefield. We believe that a large majority of countries share this view.”

“India has expressed that we are willing to provide all the support required to Ukraine, both in terms of finding a peaceful solution, and in the recovery (reconstruction) process later,” he added.

He said the ongoing Ukrainian conflict will form part of the discussions between PM Modi and President Zelenskyy.

On humanitarian aid delivered to Ukraine, he said that India has so far delivered 16 batches of assistance, which include 135 tonnes of material, and further assistance is being explored.

He also said that while 18,000 Indian students had been brought back in 2021 under Operation Ganga, more than 1,000 went back and are still there, even as the war is intensifying.