On the side of India, diplomacy remains very cautious. This Saturday, New Delhi refused to deplore Russian aggression in Ukraine before the United Nations Security Council. A wait-and-see attitude that can be explained by the strong relationship between India and Russia as well as the United States.
With our correspondent in Bangalore, Como Bastin
Over the phone and on Twitter, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke directly to Narendra Modi on Saturday. He hoped to convince the Indian Prime Minister to support ukraine in front of Russia before the United Nations.
A waste of time for now. In a statement following their conversation, Narendra Modi mentions his “ deep anguish in the face of the loss of human life and calls for immediate cessation of violence without directly condemning Russia.
“India needs the United States and Russia”
Congress party figure Shashi Tharoor lamented India’s silence on Ukraine. For Nandan Unnikrishnan, a specialist in relations between India and the post-Soviet space, this wait-and-see attitude is not surprising: “ India needs the United States and Russia to address the challenges it faces along its Himalayan border and in the Indo-Pacific. New Delhi does not want to find itself in a position to choose between the two powers. India has publicly declared this war to be regrettable. But condemning Russia as the aggressor seems unlikely at this point. »
During their conversation, Volodymyr Zelensky and Narendra Modi also discussed the repatriation of thousands of Indian students stuck in Ukraine. On this issue, it is currently New Delhi that needs Kiev.
Spoke with ?? Prime Minister @narendramodi. Informed of the course of ?? repulsing ?? aggression. More than 100,000 invaders are on our land. They insidiously fire on residential buildings. Urged ?? to give us political support in?? Security Council. Stop the aggressor together!
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) February 26, 2022
►To listen: War in Ukraine: the long hours of waiting for refugees at the border with Slovakia