'Will do whatever is possible to find solution to Ukraine conflict': PM Modi to Zelenskyy in first meet
PM Modi, who arrived in Japan on Friday, met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on May 20. This is the first meeting between the two leaders post the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
FollowPrime Minister Narendra Modi held bilateral talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the G7 summit in the Japanese city of Hiroshima on Saturday. This is the first time both leaders have met since the onset of the conflict in Ukraine in 2022.
The prime minister stated that the war in Ukraine is a "very big issue" for the entire world and that it has had a range of impacts on the world at the meeting that took place outside of the G7 conference in Hiroshima.
"I wish to assure you that India and I, in my personal capacity, will do whatever is possible to find a solution to this (conflict)," Prime Minister Modi said in his opening remarks during the discussions. The prime minister told the Ukrainian leader that he does not see the conflict as a political or economic issue and that for him, it is an issue of humanity and human values.
“PM Narendra Modi held talks with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during the G-7 Summit in Hiroshima,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a tweet.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Japan’s Hiroshima to attend the G7 Summit. This is the second multilateral summit he is attending this week. He addressed the Arab League on Friday.
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Photos that were circulated indicated that National Security Advisor Ajit Doval attended the meeting between Prime Minister Modi and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine. The Prime Minister of India's office also released photos of the meeting, which included both leaders and a group of ministers and senior government officials.
Earlier, Prime Minister Modi held bilateral talks with his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida, French President Emmanuel Macron and Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, among others.
The meeting between Modi and Zelenskyy was planned as a result of several conversations between India's and Ukraine's top officials.
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February of last year, PM Modi and Zelenskyy met for the first time in person at this time. PM Modi arrived in Hiroshima on Friday to attend the annual summit of the G7 grouping in the first leg of his three-nation tour that will also take him to Papua New Guinea and Australia.
Since the Ukraine conflict began, Modi has spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin as well as Zelenskyy a number of times. On October 4 last year, Modi told Zelenskyy over the phone that there is "no military solution" and that India is prepared to support any diplomatic initiatives.
The G7 comprises the US, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Canada and Japan. Japan, the current chair of the grouping, invited India and seven other countries to the summit.
