Praising the Indian government and Prime Minister Narendra Modi for “consistently” taking a “balanced position on the Ukrainian crisis” and for advocating its “resolution through dialogue”, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that President Vladimir Putin will visit India this year and preparations for it are underway.
This will be Putin’s first visit to India after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The announcement of the visit comes at a time when US President Donald Trump has taken the lead in mediating a ceasefire between the Kremlin and Kyiv. Trump is also expected to visit India for the summit of Quad leaders later this year.
In a video address to a conference titled ‘Russia and India: Together Towards a New Bilateral Agenda’ in Moscow, Lavrov said, “It is symbolic that Prime Minister Modi made his first bilateral foreign visit after his re-election last year to Russia. Now it is our turn. Russian President Putin has accepted the invitation of the head of the Indian government. The visit of the head of the Russian state to the Republic of India is being prepared.”
Lavrov said, “I would like to separately express my gratitude… for the fact that India, and personally Prime Minister Modi, consistently take a balanced position on the Ukrainian crisis and advocate its resolution through dialogue and the elimination of the root causes of this conflict.”
He said Russia “fully shares this approach and from the very beginning of the crisis, we have been talking about Russia’s openness to negotiations, which should lead to the end of the conflict and the establishment of a lasting peace by eliminating its root causes”.
The Ukraine war has put India in a delicate diplomatic position with its Western allies. India has also abstained from voting against Russia in several resolutions at the United Nations.
Lavrov said, “Moscow and New Delhi have close or even coinciding views on the objectively emerging multipolar world order which, in our common conviction, should be based on a variety of development models and compliance by all states with the principles of the UN Charter not selectively, but in their entirety and interrelation.
