Ukrainian FM Andrii Sybiha backs India's call to resolve conflict with Russia

Ukraine is backing India’s call to move toward peace with Russia. Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Kyiv supports Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks that it is time to end the war and is ready to advance diplomatic efforts with India.

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Prime Minister Modi said in the presence of Putin, it is time to end the endless war. We support this position. Ukraine is willing to end the war. We have realistic proposals and it is time to move to diplomatic efforts.

Sybiha made the comments while welcoming External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar to Kyiv for what he described as the first separate bilateral visit by an Indian foreign minister to Ukraine. He said the talks focused on peaceful efforts, bilateral cooperation, freedom of navigation in the Black Sea, and global food security.

Sybiha also warned that Russian attacks on civilian ships, ports and infrastructure had turned the Black Sea into a battlefield. He expressed condolences for Indian citizens killed in the conflict and said the two countries discussed restoring navigation. Blocking routes used to deliver Ukrainian food, he said, threatened hunger and crises for millions of people.

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The role of India as a global leader is extremely important, especially for the involvement of a wider circle of countries.

The Ukrainian minister described India’s role as a global leader as especially important for bringing more countries into diplomatic efforts. He said Ukraine and India would also work to intensify economic contacts. Bilateral trade currently stands at $2.6 billion, which he said left substantial room for growth.

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Because of the Russian aggression, the Black Sea has actually become a battlefield.

Potential areas for expanded cooperation include energy, infrastructure, transportation, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, digitalization and heavy machinery. Sybiha said the two foreign ministers would co-chair the Intergovernmental Economic Commission and discuss when its work would continue.

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We see huge perspective in energy, infrastructure, transportation, agrarian sector, pharmaceutical industry, digitalization, heavy machinery building.