Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday (August 23) told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that India will always stand by Ukraine in providing humanitarian assistance.
“I thank him (President Zelenskyy) for his warm welcome to me and my delegation… Today is a very historic day for India-Ukraine relations… A Prime Minister of India has come to Ukraine for the first time, which in itself is a historic event… Tomorrow is your national day and we congratulate you on this… We pray for peace (in Ukraine)…” PM Modi said in his remarks during a meeting with Zelenskyy.
PM Modi recalls the early days of the war
The Prime Minister thanked Zelenskyy for his help in evacuating Indian citizens from Ukraine in the early days of the war and assured that India would always support Ukraine in providing humanitarian aid.
“When the initial days of the war were here, you helped in evacuation of Indian citizens and students. I express my gratitude to you for your help during this time of crisis… The world knows very well that during the war we played two roles… The first was the humanitarian approach… I assure you that whatever the need may be from a humanitarian point of view, India will always be with you and will be two steps ahead…” he said.
India was never neutral in Russia-Ukraine war: PM Modi
PM Modi noted that India has stayed away from the Russia-Ukraine war, but stressed that it has “never been neutral” and has always been “in favour of peace”.
“The second path we have taken is to stay away from war. We have stayed away from war with conviction, but that does not mean we are neutral. We have never been neutral. We have been in favour of peace from day one. I have come to Ukrainian soil with a message of peace,” Prime Minister Modi told Zelensky.
The Prime Minister mentioned his recent visit to Russia, where he met with President Putin and said that the latter told him in no uncertain terms that solutions to problems cannot be found on the battlefield. He stated that both countries have to sit down at the negotiating table and find a way out of the current crisis.
“I want to assure you and the international community that respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity is India’s commitment. Some time ago, when I met President Putin, I told the media that this is not the time for war. I was in Russia recently and I expressed my view in clear words: no solution to any problem is found on the battlefield. The solution is found through dialogue and diplomacy. And the two sides have to sit down and move in that direction without wasting any time. Both sides will have to find ways out of this crisis,” he said.
More news to come later…
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