Modi says 'firmly for peace' on historic Ukraine visit

KIEV

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi used his first visit to Kiev on Friday to again call for a diplomatic solution to more than two years of war with Russia, saying he stood "firmly for peace" in talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Modi was in Kiev just over a month after angering Ukraine by hugging Russian President Vladimir Putin during a meeting in Moscow.

His visit also came as Kiev's forces are mounting a major incursion into Russia's Kursk region, while Moscow's army is advancing in eastern Ukraine.

Arriving for talks on Friday in the first visit to Ukraine by an Indian prime minister, he embraced Zelensky, and the pair held a minute of silence at a memorial commemorating children killed in Russia's invasion.

New Delhi, which has avoided explicit condemnation of Moscow's invasion, has cast itself as a possible peacemaker between the warring neighbors.

"We were not neutral from day one; we have taken a side, and we stand firmly for peace," he told Zelensky.

He earlier said that "no problem should be solved on the battlefield."

The Indian leader pledged humanitarian support for Kiev, saying, "Whatever help is required from a humanitarian standpoint, India will always stand with you."

Zelensky called Modi's visit a "historic moment."

But neither side showed signs of a breakthrough, with India's Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar later saying it was "clearly a complex issue" and that India believes Moscow should be involved if peace efforts were to progress.

Later in his evening address to the country, Zelensky said it is "important for us that India remains committed to international law and supports our sovereignty and territorial integrity," without saying if he received such guarantees from Modi.

• 'Truly heartbreaking' 

In Washington, U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters that Modi's visit could be "helpful" if it works toward "getting us to an end to the conflict that comports with President Zelensky's vision for a just peace."

Later, U.S. President Joe Biden said in a statement that he had spoken to Zelensky on Friday and announced a new package of military assistance, including air-defense missiles and counter-drone equipment.

Zelensky said he welcomed the package during the call, writing on X, formerly Twitter, that Ukraine "urgently" needed the new weapons.

As Modi arrived in Kiev, Ukraine said Russian strikes had killed eight civilians in several regions.

Modi began his visit by accompanying Zelensky to an exhibit commemorating children killed in the war.

"I realized that the first casualty of war is, in fact, innocent children," Modi said. "And that is truly heartbreaking."

He was criticized in July for hugging Putin in Moscow hours after a Russian strike on a Kiev children's hospital.

It is not yet known how effective Modi could be as a deal-maker.

Jaishankar said the pair held "very open and in many ways constructive talks" and that Modi had invited Zelensky to India.

He said New Delhi is willing to do "whatever we can because we think that the continuation of this conflict is terrible for Ukraine and the world."

India has not joined U.N. sanctions over the invasion and is a major buyer of Russian oil.

Jaishankar said it was not in line with the country's "political-diplomatic history" to impose sanctions on countries.

• Indian diplomacy 

But the Ukraine invasion has also put some strain on relations between India and Russia.

In the first year of the invasion in 2022, Putin publicly acknowledged that Modi had "concerns" over Moscow's actions in Ukraine.

India has also been angry at Moscow over reports of several Indian citizens dying in Ukraine after being enlisted with Russian forces.

Ukraine has said one of the aims of launching its surprise offensive into the Kursk region on August 6 was to force Moscow into "fair" negotiations.

While there was no sign of any serious talks to end the war before then, Russia has said the counter-offensive now makes them impossible.

Putin earlier this year said Kiev would have to abandon territory in four of its regions, which Moscow claims to have annexed, as a precondition to opening talks—a hardline demand that drew scorn in Kiev and the West.

Zelensky has also ruled out direct negotiations with Putin.

Even as Moscow scrambles to fight off the Ukrainian attack into its western Kursk region, its forces are still advancing in the Donetsk region of eastern Ukraine, capturing several towns and villages in recent days.