Journalism of Courage
This is an archive article published on August 19, 2024
PM Modi’s landmark visit to Ukraine set for Aug 23
This trip comes about a month after he met President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in June this year. (X/@narendramodi)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Ukraine and discuss bilateral relations and multilateral cooperation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Aug 23, confirmed the Ukrainian presidential office on Monday.
“This is the first visit of the head of the Indian government to our country in the history of bilateral relations,” the office said in a statement on Telegram on Monday.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Secretary (West) Tanmaya Lal said, “This is also a landmark and a historic visit since this will be the first time an Indian PM will be visiting Ukraine in more than 30 years since we established our diplomatic relations. This visit will build upon the recent high-level interactions between the leaders.”
Terming it ‘an important visit’, the MEA said that the ongoing conflict in Ukraine will form a part of discussions, highlighting that India has always advocated diplomacy and dialogue to resolve conflict. The MEA also added that India has independent ties with both Russia and Ukraine.
India has refrained from directly blaming Russia – for what Moscow calls a special military operation – while urging the neighbours to resolve the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy.
Western capitals have imposed sanctions on Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, but friendly nations such as India and China have continued to trade with it.
The US has raised concerns over India’s relationship with Russia, especially at a time when Washington has been seeking to strengthen ties with New Delhi as a potential counterweight to an ascendant China.
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New Delhi is seeking to deepen its relationship with the West while keeping ties intact with old friend Russia.
(With inputs from Reuters and PTI)
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