India, building relations abroad, balances between two opposing sides.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in Kyiv on Friday. This is his first visit to Ukraine A month and a half ago, Mondi met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. What will the Prime Minister of India bring to Kyiv?
Balance of India
Kyiv and the West reacted lightly to Modi’s July trip to Moscow.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said it was “sad to see the leader of the world’s largest democracy hugging the world’s most notorious criminal in Moscow.”
India, building relations abroad, balances between two opposing sides. This country has successfully implemented the principle of non-alignment in any alliances for decades.
Experts believe that Mondi’s scheduled visit to Ukraine on August 23 is a statement that Delhi, without abandoning its strong ties with Russia, intends to continue to cooperate closely with the West.
“India will not bash Western powers or anyone. The purpose of this trip is to promote India’s interests by reaffirming friendship with Kiev and expressing concerns about the ongoing war,” he said.
Visiting hours
Modi’s visit to Moscow in July came hours after Russia’s bombing of Ukraine killed at least 41 people, including at the Okhmatdyt children’s hospital in Kyiv. This blow shocked the whole world.
India’s prime minister called the children’s deaths a painful and horrific event, but again avoided blaming Russia.
Mondi will arrive in Kyiv against the backdrop of the Ukrainian operation in the Kursk region. The timing of the visit indicates that Indian diplomacy is taking into account the sharp US reaction to Modi’s visit to Moscow, Western analysts believe.
India, much to the irritation of the Western powers, refrained from directly condemning Russia for the war it had started. However, Delhi often speaks about the need to respect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of countries, and continues to promote peace negotiations.
Make money in Russia
India, the world’s largest arms importer, has increased its own arms production and diversified military imports in recent years, but more than half of it still comes from Russia.
India has also increased its oil imports from Russia, taking advantage of lower prices offered by Moscow: Russia was the largest supplier of oil to the Indian market last year.
The United States and its allies have often pushed India to take a more outspoken stance on the war, but refrained from using harsh sanctions or other means of pressure.
The West views India as a counterweight to China and does not want to upset this balance. Additionally, India is the fifth largest economy in the world and an important market.
New peace plan?
Many experts believe Modi may want to position himself as a peacemaker, given India’s close ties with Moscow and the West.
But he is unlikely to bring any peace plan to Kyiv.
“Is India really ready for such a role, and do the conditions allow it? India itself does not like when other countries try to intervene in issues that are important to it, and above all, in the issue of Kashmir . I don’t think Modi is ready to officially offer his services as a mediator, only if Russia and Ukraine want it. But right now I don’t think they want that,” Kugelman said.
Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.