Jaishankar meets Zelenskyy in Kyiv, says talks centered on approaches to end the ongoing conflict

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during his one-day trip to Ukraine, where he discussed India’s approach to ending the ongoing conflict. Significantly, he visited Ukraine after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s peace message to Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying India was prepared to help end the Russia-Ukraine war.

We discussed important issues: Zelenskyy 

“I met with India’s Minister of External Affairs @DrSJaishankar. We discussed important issues. We are grateful to India for its commitment to ending this unjust war – Russia’s war against Ukraine. This certainly must not be a time of war. Peace is needed. This is India’s clear position,” Zelenskyy said in a social media post.

The Ukrainian President alleged that Russia launched jet-powered ‘Shahed’ drones at Ukraine with Iran’s help during Jaishankar’s visit. However, most of the drones were shot down by Ukrainian fighter jets.

“Of course, we discussed the situation in the Black Sea, including the existing threats to civilian shipping. We concur that it is absolutely unacceptable to block food supplies to regions where this is a highly sensitive issue and where people depend on these maritime routes. Russia’s actions aimed at blocking our ports, our food corridor, and our supplies are causing major disruption to global relations. We must all work together to guarantee security. Thank you!,” he said.

Talks centered on approaches to end the ongoing conflict: Jaishankar

On the other hand, Jaishankar said his conversation with Zelenskyy centered on approaches to end the ongoing conflict. “Pleased to call on President @ZelenskyyUa today #Ukraine. Apprised him of discussions with FM @andrii_sybiha on deepening our bilateral cooperation. Our conversation centered on approaches to end the ongoing conflict,” he said.

Earlier in the day, Jaishankar said said India is ready to extend “any help in any manner” to end the Ukraine-Russia war, which is now in its fifth year. He said this as he held wide-ranging talks with his Ukrainian counterpart Andrii Sybiha in Kyiv.

“India has consistently maintained that this is not an era of war, and that solutions will not emerge from the battlefield,” Jaishankar said in a joint press statement alongside Sybiha after their talks.

Endless war must now give way to the end of war

The EAM also recalled that Prime Minister Narendra Modi just two days ago declared that endless war must now give way to the end of war during a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Bishkek on the margins of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit.

“Every passing day of conflict only means more deaths and more destruction. Understandably, it is for the parties involved to find a way. But, if India can be of any help in any manner, we are ready,” Jaishankar said.

India has been consistently calling for ending the Russia-Ukraine conflict through dialogue and diplomacy. “In consonance with Prime Minister Modi’s call for an end to war, my visit has a focus on the prospects of dialogue and diplomacy. I will be taking back the views and positions shared today by the Ukrainian side,” he added.

Prior to this, the Ukrainian foreign minister welcomed PM Modi’s call to move from an endless war towards an end to the war, saying his country “stands ready for diplomacy.”

“India is a global power and we welcome Prime Minister Modi’s call to move from an endless war towards an end to the war,” Sybiha said in a post on X.

Jaishankar, who arrived in Kyiv amid escalating hostilities between Moscow and Kyiv, said his trip has a bilateral purpose. “But more important, it takes place in the larger context of the war that has been underway since 2022. Only two days ago, an Indian national was also killed in an attack in Kyiv. We join in mourning every life lost and convey our deepest sympathy to every affected family,” he said.

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