Modi’s Kiev visit ‘a symbolic gesture’ for peace talk-GT

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is reportedly scheduled to visit Ukraine on Friday, marking the first visit by an Indian leader since the Russia-Ukraine conflict began in February 2022. 

While India is prepared to contribute to resolving the conflict, analysts said on Tuesday that Modi's visit, which aims to repair ties with the West and the US, is a largely symbolic gesture and unlikely to significantly advance peace talks.

Modi will complete a two-day visit to Poland from Wednesday and thereafter he will travel to Ukraine, according to India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). 

This will be the first visit by an Indian prime minister to Ukraine after the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1992, India's MEA said in a release on Monday. The MEA announced that Modi's "landmark visit to Ukraine will help further consolidation and expansion of bilateral ties." 

Shortly after Modi's return from a visit to Russia in July, India proposed a visit to Ukraine in an effort to balance its relations between the US and Russia, Liu Zongyi, secretary-general of the Research Center for China-South Asia Cooperation at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

Modi's visit to Russia had sparked dissatisfaction among several Western countries, particularly the US. By Modi's visiting Ukraine, India aims to repair its relations with the West while maintaining a delicate balance between the US and Russia, Liu said. 

However, the proposal to visit Ukraine was made before the conflict in Russia's Kursk region, and with the ongoing clashes now a daily occurrence, India finds itself in a dilemma, said Liu. He noted that Modi's visit to Ukraine is merely a gesture and will not have a substantial impact on the current situation.

Although India's international status has risen in recent years, its influence remains largely confined to South Asia. Mediation in the Russia-Ukraine conflict typically involves either major powers facilitating negotiations or smaller nations collectively voicing concerns through multilateral channels, Cui Heng, a research fellow with the Center for Russian Studies of East China Normal University, told the Global Times.

For India, the lack of collective support and limited resources it can dedicate to global issues like the Russia-Ukraine conflict make its role in mediation relatively limited, Cui said. 

Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov said on Monday that Moscow was not ready to hold peace talks  for now given Kiev's attack on Russia's Kursk region, but that Russia was not withdrawing its earlier peace proposals, Reuters reported. 

India's Modi to 'share perspectives' on ending Ukraine war during Kyiv trip

By Reuters August 21, 2024

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NEW DELHI, Aug 21 (Reuters) - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he will "share perspectives" on the peaceful resolution of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia during his visit to Kyiv this week, more than a month after he travelled to Moscow.

Modi departed for Poland on Wednesday and will visit Kyiv on Friday, the first trip to Ukraine by an Indian prime minister since diplomatic relations were established more than three decades back.

The trip follows Modi's July 8-9 visit to Moscow which drew criticism from the U.S. and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy as it coincided with a lethal Russian strike on a children's hospital in Kyiv.

Modi condemned the killing of innocent children in an implicit rebuke to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The short visit to Kyiv is seen by many Indian analysts as an attempt to control the damage from the Moscow trip and also a strategic balancing act at a time New Delhi has grown closer to the West, particularly Washington.

India's diplomats reject that and say New Delhi's ties with Russia and Ukraine are independent of each other and the trip builds on interactions between New Delhi and Kyiv across sectors.

"I look forward to the opportunity to ... share perspectives on peaceful resolution of the ongoing Ukraine conflict," Modi said in a statement on Wednesday before his departure. "As a friend and partner, we hope for an early return of peace and stability in the region."

India and Russia have been close friends since the days of the Soviet Union and New Delhi has not condemned Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, instead urging both sides to use dialogue and diplomacy to resolve their differences.

Russia became India's top oil supplier since the war began as Indian refiners snapped up cheap Russian crude.

New Delhi has also remained engaged with Kyiv, with Modi meeting Zelenskiy on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in Italy in June. They have also spoken several times by phone.

The prospect of India mediating to help end the war in Ukraine has been raised in diplomatic circles from time to time but New Delhi has appeared cagey, saying only that it is willing to offer any support to resolve the conflict peacefully.

"Contrary to widespread expectations, Modi’s visit to Warsaw and Kyiv may be less about a new Indian peace initiative on Ukraine," C Raja Mohan of the Singapore-based Institute of South Asian Studies wrote in Wednesday's Indian Express newspaper.

"President Vladimir Putin knows how to reach out to the U.S., which has the most leverage in the Ukraine war, and open negotiations when he finds it appropriate," he wrote, adding that Modi's trip was more about boosting New Delhi's ties in Central Europe.

India's Modi to visit Ukraine on Aug. 23, weeks after rebuking Putin

By YP Rajesh August 19, 2024

NEW DELHI, Aug 19 (Reuters) - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Ukraine on Friday to boost ties with Kyiv, weeks after a trip to Moscow in which he rebuked Russian President Vladimir Putin over the war with its neighbour.

Announcing the Aug. 23 trip, India's foreign ministry said it would be a "landmark and historic" visit, the first by an Indian prime minister to Ukraine since diplomatic relations were established over 30 years ago.

Indian analysts said the visit would aim to control damage from Modi's trip last month to Moscow, which coincided with a lethal strike on a children's hospital in Kyiv, embarrassing Modi and drawing criticism from President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Indian Prime Minister
Narendra Modi May 20, 2023.  REUTERS/File Photo

New Delhi, however, said it has substantive and independent ties with both Russia and Ukraine and that the visit builds on continuing interactions between India and Ukraine.

"This is not a zero-sum game ... these are independent, broad ties," Tanmaya Lal, Secretary (West) in the Indian foreign ministry, told reporters.

"This is an important visit that is expected to catalyze our ties in a whole range of sectors," Lal said, listing economic and business links, agriculture, infrastructure, health and education, pharmaceuticals, defence and culture.

Lal said the conflict in Ukraine would also be discussed, and reiterated that New Delhi was willing to provide any support it can in pursuit of peace.

"Lasting peace can only be achieved through options that are acceptable to both parties. And it can only be a negotiated settlement," he said.

Zelenskiy's office said he and Modi would discuss bilateral and multilateral cooperation and that a "number of documents" were expected to be signed.

MODI REBUKED PUTIN IN MOSCOW

During Modi's trip to Moscow on July 8-9, old friends India and Russia sought to boost bilateral trade and cooperation in areas ranging from nuclear energy to medicine.

But the visit coincided with the strike on the hospital in Ukraine's capital, prompting Modi to use emotive language to deliver an implicit rebuke to Putin at their summit.

Modi told Putin the death of innocent children was painful and terrifying, and that Moscow and Kyiv should resolve their conflict through dialogue and diplomacy.

Modi's visit also coincided with the July 9-10 NATO summit in Washington at which the allies sought to bolster Ukraine and counter Russia.

The United States said it raised concerns with India about its ties with Russia but also said the relationship gives New Delhi an ability to urge Putin to end the war.

Top Indian diplomats have since held regular talks with their Ukrainian counterparts, and Modi met Zelenskiy on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in Italy in June. They have also spoken several times by phone since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Ukraine has pitched for New Delhi to help rebuild its economy, inviting investment from Indian companies at a January business summit in India.

India has traditionally had close economic and defence ties with Moscow and refrained from criticising Russia over its invasion. It has increased purchases of Russian oil to record levels, saying it must protect its own national interest first.

The prospect of India mediating to help end the war in Ukraine has been raised in diplomatic circles from time to time but New Delhi has appeared cagey, saying only that it is willing to offer any support to resolve the conflict peacefully⍐.