Until there is a just peace, Ukraine and India shall have to work together. This can be the shortest summary of the shortest visit to Kyiv by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on August 23. There is no peace in sight. Russia made 200 missile and drone strikes August 25 and 26, and Ukraine’s Kursk campaign goes on unabated, its Palyanytsia drones striking 900km inside Russian territory.
The historic visit, the first visit by any prime minister, coincided with the Day of the Ukrainian Flag on the eve of the 33rd Independence Day of Ukraine, the underlying message being of support to the sovereignty of Ukraine, something that Russia is trying to destroy.
Loaded with euphoria of desis and Ukrainian India lovers, the visit had created an ambience of expectations long before it took place. Questions such as these were at the top: Will India mediate? Will it have an out-of-the-box solution to stop a war that has lasted more than 915 days?
Modi’s visit to Moscow in July, and the contrasting optics with President Vladimir Putin and the simultaneous missile strikes of a children’s hospital had caused embarrassment sufficient enough to announce a visit to Ukraine.
This story is from the September 08, 2024 edition of THE WEEK India.
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This story is from the September 08, 2024 edition of THE WEEK India.
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