A Historic Handshake & Hug: India stands with Ukraine

Kyiv: Ukraine and Russia need to engage with each other to find a solution to the ongoing conflict between them, India said on Friday after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held wide-ranging talks with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy here under the shadow of the raging war. In the discussions, Modi reiterated the need for "practical engagement" between all stakeholders to develop an innovative solution that will help build broad acceptability and contribute towards peace and stability in the region.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said the prime minister conveyed to Zelenskyy India's willingness to contribute in "all possible ways" to facilitate an early return of peace to Ukraine.

It was a very detailed, open and in many ways constructive discussion, he said, adding the talks revolved around to some extent the military situation, on concerns like food and energy security, and on "conceivable pathways to peace". The Ukrainian side wanted continued involvement of India with the Global Peace summit, he said.

Jaishankar said there was also a discussion on what could be effective ways of taking the discussions forward. "It is India's view that the two sides (Ukraine and Russia) need to engage with each other to find a solution," he said. The external affairs minister said the two leaders reiterated their readiness to continue cooperation to uphold principles of international law such as respect for territorial integrity and protect the sovereignty of states. Modi also spoke about his discussions recently with President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. Jaishankar said the prime minister sought the president's assessment both of the ground situation as well as the diplomatic scenario and Zelenskyy spoke on both issues. The external affairs minister described Modi's visit to Kyiv as a "landmark" trip.

The prime minister arrived in Kyiv on a special train in the morning and he was received by the first deputy prime minister of Ukraine Jaishankar said a significant part of discussions between Prime Minister Modi and President Zelenskyy was devoted to the bilateral relations.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi presented four BHISHM Cubes to Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Each cube consists of medicines and equipment for the first line of care for all kinds of injuries and medical situations. It also includes surgical equipment for a basic operation that can manage 10-15 basic surgeries per day. The Cube can handle about 200 cases of diverse nature in emergencies such as trauma, bleeding, burns, fractures, etc. It can also generate power and oxygen in limited amounts. A team of experts from India has been deployed to provide initial training to the Ukrainian side to operate the cube.

India, Ukraine ink 4 agreements

India and Ukraine on Friday inked four agreements following talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The agreements would provide for cooperation in areas of agriculture, food industry, medicine, culture and humanitarian assistance, officials said. Earlier, Modi began the historic visit to the Ukrainian capital Kyiv under the shadow of war to hold talks with President Zelenskyy. It is the first-ever visit to Ukraine by an Indian prime minister after Ukraine became independent in 1991, and his trip comes amid Kyiv's fresh military offensive in Russia's western Kursk region.