Indian Prime Minister Modi offers to help ‘as a friend’ to bring peace to Ukraine

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered “as a friend” to help bring peace to Ukraine in a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a brief visit on Friday that many in the war-battered country hope will pave the way for an Indian role in peace mediation.

Modi’s trip marks the most prominent wartime visit by a leader from a nation that maintains a neutral position on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. India’s support is seen as a factor that could bolster efforts toward peace negotiations.

Zelenskyy and Modi discussed at length Ukraine’s peace formula, which prioritizes territorial integrity and the withdrawal of Russian troops, according to the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“We say it very loudly and clearly that we support the respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Modi said through a translator during his meeting with Zelenskyy. “It’s our highest priority.”

Modi added that during his visit to Russia last month, he told Russian President Vladimir Putin “that problems cannot be resolved on the battlefield.”

“The only way of resolving problems is through dialogue and diplomacy,” he said, adding that “it must be done without losing any time.”

Zelenskyy called Modi’s visit friendly and symbolic, because it came the day before Ukraine’s Independence Day.

“We chose to stay away from war. That doesn’t mean we are neutral,” said the Indian leader.

“We are on the side of peace,” Modi added. “Personally, as a friend, if there is any role that I can play, I would very much like to play that role toward peace.”

Modi and Zelenskyy spent two and a half hours behind closed doors before they signed cooperation agreements in the spheres of agriculture, medicine, and culture. The joint statement said both countries agreed on the importance of closer dialogue to “ensure a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace.”

Analysts say the visit to Ukraine could also be an attempt by Modi to strike a more neutral stance after what has been seen as his lean toward Russia. Zelenskyy had criticized his visit to Moscow in July, when Modi met with Putin on the day Russian missiles struck across Ukraine, killing scores of people.

Zelenskyy described that meeting as a “huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts.” He also chided Modi for hugging Putin during their meeting. But on Friday Zelenskyy also hugged Modi, apparently putting aside his criticism.

A Ukrainian analyst said the outcome of Modi’s first visit is likely to be modest, as this is just “the beginning of a complex dialogue between India, Ukraine, and Europe.”

“Establishing relations with India will be challenging and a long process,” said Yurii Bohdanov on his Telegram channel. But he emphasized it was critical Ukraine.

If India were to support Ukraine’s approach to a peace settlement, it could enhance Kyiv’s chances of gaining more backing from other countries in the “Global South,” where “India remains China’s main competitor for influence.”

“This will further increase pressure on Russia,” Bohdanov added.

At the start of their meeting, Modi and Zelenskyy visited a memorial for hundreds of Ukrainian children killed in more than two years of war. Zelenskyy published a video on Telegram showing the two hugging each other after shaking hands.

“Conflict is particularly devastating for young children,” Modi wrote on the social media platform X. “My heart goes out to the families of children who lost their lives, and I pray that they find the strength to endure their grief.”

They laid teddy bears at the memorial at the National Museum of the History of Ukraine in World War II before observing a moment of silence.

Ukrainian media said Modi also met with representatives of the Indian diaspora who gathered around him and cheered “Modi, Modi, Modi.” He also paid tribute at the Mahatma Gandhi Monument in Kyiv.

The chief of Ukraine’s Presidential Office Andriy Yermak said Modi’s visit was historic and emphasized Ukraine’s expectation that India could play a role in ending the war with a “just peace,” referring to Ukraine’s peace formula.

“We respect India as a very big democracy in the world and a powerful country,” Yermak told the India Today newspaper. “But now it’s necessary to say who is the aggressor, who is the victim.”

Before arriving in Ukraine, Modi urged for diplomatic efforts to end the war during a visit to Poland on Thursday, pledging India’s support and saying that no conflict can be solved on a battlefield.

India has avoided condemning Russia’s invasion and instead has urged Moscow and Kyiv to resolve the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy.

Modi’s visit is the first by an Indian prime minister to Ukraine since the two countries established diplomatic relations over 30 years ago.

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Associated Press writers Ashok Sharma in New Delhi and Illia Novikov in Kyiv, Ukraine, contributed to this report.