Looking at India to help moderate dialogue with Russia: Ukrainian envoy
Amid the renewed push for peace talks, external affairs minister S Jaishankar said that India believes Russia’s participation is essential to take forward negotiations to end the conflict
Ukraine is looking to India to moderate a dialogue with Russia since New Delhi can use its position on the global stage to convince Moscow of the need to join peace talks, Ukrainian ambassador Oleksandr Polishchuk has said.
The Ukrainian side expects India to share responsibility on global issues as part of its efforts to secure a seat at the United Nations Security Council and the Indian side should frame a “concrete plan for diplomacy and dialogue”, the envoy told HT in an interview.
Polishchuk’s remarks came in the wake of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Ukraine last month for talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky, and Russian President Vladimir Putin and Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni calling on India and China to play a role in resolving the conflict.
“Maybe India can play the role of a courier to deliver messages, but this isn’t what we expected from India. We expected moderation of the dialogue with Russia, we need those who can moderate negotiations,” Polishchuk said.
“If the only way ahead is diplomacy and dialogue, India can’t be just a post box. India should use its position and relations with Russia to convince Moscow of the need to take part in peace talks.”
He added, “Aiming for the seat [in a reformed UN Security Council] just to protect its national interests would be a low target. Of course, Ukraine supports India’s bid for UN Security Council membership.”
Amid the renewed push for peace talks, external affairs minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday said that India believes Russia’s participation is essential to take forward negotiations to end the conflict, and New Delhi is willing offer its advice to both countries.
Polishchuk said National Security Adviser Ajit Doval’s ongoing visit to Russia and Jaishankar’s recent meeting in Riyadh? with Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov were a “great chance” for India to share its experiences from the visit to Kyiv. The meeting between Modi and Zelensky was planned for 40 minutes but went on for three hours and the two sides had “open and frank discussions”, he said.
Modi discussed his meeting with Putin in July and shared his observations and conclusions with Zelensky.
Polishchuk said while Zelenskyy appreciated India’s participation in meetings on Ukraine’s peace formula and the peace summit in Switzerland, he proposed the holding of the second peace summit in India with the precondition that India join the communiqué from the first summit. Zelenskyy requested India to hold the second summit before November 2024.
He hoped the office of India’s NSA and the external affairs ministry can make “concrete proposals” for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine. “If India is participating in discussions and meetings, it should have its own position,” he said, expressing hope India will have a “concrete plan for diplomacy and dialogue”.
Polishchuk also welcomed an India NGO’s involvement in humanitarian demining operations in Ukraine and New Delhi’s offer to fund community projects. “India’s Horizon Group has set up an office in Kyiv and is awaiting certification to start the humanitarian demining project. This is a good and positive move,” he said, pointing to demining work done in Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Cambodia and Kuwait by the NGO founded by senior retired Indian Army officers.
“Ukraine looks forward to taking up India’s offer on high impact community development projects. There was a green light from India for private firms to come to Ukraine for rebuilding and reconstruction,” he added.
With Russia increasingly targeting power distribution facilities, including one close to Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, and hydropower facilities as winter approaches, Ukraine is looking to India for generators and transformers in case the need arises, since equipment made by BHEL was developed with Ukrainian technology, Polishchuk said.