PM Modi speaks to Ukraine President Zelenskyy, reiterates India's support for dialogue and diplomacy to end conflict

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday had a telephone conversation with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Zelenskyy shared his perspective on recent developments related to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Prime Minister reaffirmed India’s human-centric approach and reiterated India’s consistent position that the conflict must be resolved through dialogue and diplomacy. He conveyed India’s readiness to contribute to all efforts aimed at peaceful resolution of the conflict.


The two leaders also discussed measures to further strengthen India-Ukraine bilateral cooperation in various sectors for the mutual benefit of the two peoples.

Meanwhile, Russia battered Ukraine’s power grid again and Ukrainian forces hit another of Russia’s biggest oil refineries, officials said today, hours before delegations from Moscow and Kyiv were due to meet for new U.S.-brokered talks on how to end the fighting.

Nearly five years after Russia invaded its neighbor, the two countries remain locked in battle with no sign that either side is ready to budge from their demands. The war has already killed hundreds of thousands of soldiers and thousands of civilians, analysts and humanitarian organizations say.

U.S. President Donald Trump said in a “60 Minutes” interview that aired Sunday that Moscow and Kyiv are “very close” to a deal, despite the “tremendous hatred” between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

He said that Ukraine would have “a little bit different shape” under the settlement, but he didn’t elaborate.

Trump has previously made statements about developments in the war which haven't materialized.

The three-way talks between envoys from the U.S., Russia and Ukraine are due to start in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on Tuesday.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Monday that Trump’s team has placed “collective security,” covering not just Russia and Ukraine but also a wider area, at the top of the agenda for the two days of discussions.