The prime minister held separate phone calls with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Vladimir Putin today — the second and third such talks since Russia began its military offensive in Ukraine on 24 February
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken to Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy twice and thrice to Russia’s Vladimir Putin since the offensive began on 24 February. Press Information Bureau
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is leaving no stone unturned in his attempts to ensure that his administration evacuates all nationals stranded in war-hit Ukraine.
Since the offensive began on 24 February, he has been in constant touch with the leaders of both countries — Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy — and urging them to support India’s attempts at evacuating its citizens from the conflict zone.
As the prime minister held talks with both the leaders on Monday, we take a look back at his ties with both leaders and what they have spoken to with one another on the issue.
Modi and Zelenskyy
On Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Ukranian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy for around 35 minutes, during which he urged his “support” in evacuation of around 700 Indian students stuck in northeastern Ukraine’s Sumy city.
According to a PTI report, a source said, “Prime Minister Modi sought continued support from the government of Ukraine in ongoing efforts for evacuation of Indian nationals from Sumy.”
It was also reported that Zelenskyy had informed Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the need to counter the “Russian aggression against his country and India has appreciated Ukraine’s commitment to direct peaceful dialogue at the highest level with Moscow”.
After their phone interaction, the Ukrainian president even tweeted out:
It is important to note that this is the second such interaction between Narendra Modi and Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Earlier on 26 February, the two leaders had spoken to one another, during which Narendra Modi had called for an immediate cessation of violence and expressed India’s willingness to contribute in any way towards peace efforts.
News agency PTI had also reported that the prime minister had expressed his deep anguish about the loss of life and property due to ongoing conflict.
A Prime Minister’s Office statement read: “President Zelenskyy briefed the prime minister in detail about the ongoing conflict situation in Ukraine. The prime minister expressed his deep anguish about the loss of life and property due to the ongoing conflict. He reiterated his call for an immediate cessation of violence and a return to dialogue, and expressed India’s willingness to contribute in any way towards peace efforts.”
Modi and Putin
The prime minister also held a 50-minute-long phone call with Vladimir Putin, shortly after his conversation with Zelenskyy.
In the conversation, Narendra Modi stressed the importance of the safe evacuation of Indian citizens from Ukraine’s Sumy city at the earliest. He also urged him to hold direct talks with President Zelensky of Ukraine, in addition to the ongoing negotiations between their teams.
Government sources added that Prime Minister Modi appreciated the announcement of ceasefire and establishment of humanitarian corridors in parts of Ukraine, including Sumy.
According to an NDTV report, President Putin reportedly assured Modi of all possible cooperation in the evacuation of Indian nationals from the war-torn country.
This is the third conversation between the two leaders, who share a good rapport, since Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February.
Earlier, the two leaders had spoken on 2 March during which they discussed the evacuation of Indian citizens from Ukraine.
According to the Kremlin statement, “Putin stressed that all the necessary instructions had been given and that the Russian military was doing everything possible to ensure the safe removal of Indian citizens from the war zone and their return to their homeland”.
“The Russian side, in particular, is trying to organise an urgent evacuation of a group of Indian students from Kharkov (the Russian name of Kharkiv) through the humanitarian corridor along the shortest route to Russia,” it said.
“At the same time, according to the latest information, these students are actually taken hostage by the Ukrainian security forces, who use them as a human shield and in every possible way prevent them from leaving for Russian territory. Responsibility in this case lies entirely with the Kiev authorities,” it said.
Prior to this, Modi had spoken to the Russian strong man on 25 February, a day after Vladimir Putin had announced the ‘special military operation against Ukraine. In fact, Modi was the first world leader to speak to Putin after the Russian president ordered the military operation in Ukraine.
At that point of time, Modi had called for ‘immediate cessation of violence’ and highlighted that differences between Russia and NATO could only be resolved through ‘honest and sincere’ dialogue.
Many observe that Modi’s repeated phone calls to Putin are an extension of his good and friendly ties with the Russian president.
It can’t be forgotten that Putin had described India as a “great power” and a time-tested friend when he had visited India back in December last year.
“We see India as a great power, a friendly nation and a time-tested friend…Relations between our countries are developing,” he was quoted as saying at the time.
Reacting to the comments, Narendra Modi had said that the India-Russia friendship had “remained a constant” despite many fundamental changes on the world stage and the two countries had cooperated closely while paying attention to each other’s sensitivities.
With inputs from agencies
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