Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday met President Ram Nath Kovind and briefed him on various issues including the Russia-Ukraine crisis, sources familiar with the developments said. About 8,000 Indians have been brought back from the war-hit Ukraine so far. PM Modi has held three high-level meetings since Sunday amid escalating crisis in Ukraine after Russia launched the offensive. Special flights are being arranged from neighbouring countries as the Ukrainian airspace remains shut.
Nine such flights have been operated so far since Saturday. "We will not rest till our fellow Indians are safe.
Ninth #OperationGanga flight departs Bucharest for New Delhi with 218 Indian nationals," foreign minister S Jaishankar tweeted earlier on Tuesday.
The Ukraine war has led to a series of sanctions against the Kremlin with the West stepping up the pressure. Kyiv has also approached the International Court of Justice against Moscow.
Retaliating against punitive measures, the Kremlin on Monday banned its airspace for 36 countries. Meanwhile, India has deployed four ministers as "special envoys" in the neighbouring countries. Poland, Romania, Hungary and Slovakia Republic have been asked to help amid the evacuation efforts.
"The complex situation at the border crossings is adverserly impacting the predictable movement of people. This important humanitarian necessity must be immediately addressed. I would like to thank all the neighbouring countries of Ukraine who have opened their borders for our citizens and given all facilties to our missions and personnel to evacuate Indian nationals to their homeland," India's Permanent Representative to UN, TS Tirumurti, said on Tuesday.