“Ukraine stands ready for diplomacy,” Sybiha posted on X as he met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who arrived in Kyiv for bilateral consultations with his Ukrainian counterpart amid escalating hostilities between Moscow and Kyiv.
“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.
India has consistently called for an end to the Russia-Ukraine conflict through dialogue and diplomacy.
At a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Bishkek on the margins of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit earlier this week, Modi called for the conflict to be ended through diplomacy and dialogue.
“We must move from endless war towards the end of war, which is very crucial for the well-being of humanity,” Modi said in his opening remarks at the meeting.
In August, 2024, Modi visited the Ukrainian capital city of Kyiv and conveyed to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that both Ukraine and Russia should sit together without wasting time to end the war.
Jaishankar's visit to Kyiv comes amid concerns in New Delhi over the killing of an Indian in the Ukrainian capital this week following a Russian strike.
Sybiha welcomed Jaishankar to Kyiv for “the first-ever dedicated bilateral visit of an Indian External Affairs Minister to Ukraine.”
“This historic moment takes place amid escalating Russian attacks against our cities, port infrastructure, and civil shipping. Our capital is constantly under attack, and I appreciate my colleague's brave visit,” he added.
The two sides discussed the need to restore freedom of navigation in the Black Sea and global food security, Sybiha said.
India has been concerned over a series of attacks on merchant ships in the Black Sea in the last few weeks.
Sybiha said India and Ukraine also discussed bilateral cooperation, covering infrastructure, the pharmaceutical sector, technological innovation and digitalisation.
“From infrastructure and the pharmaceutical sector to technological innovation and digitalisation, we are ready to realise our full potential,” he said.
“We agreed to work on convening our next intergovernmental commission meeting to turn great perspectives into great mutually beneficial projects,” he added.
The Ministry of External Affairs had earlier said that Jaishankar's visit would focus on enhancing bilateral relations and provide an opportunity to exchange views on regional developments and issues of mutual interest.
The visit and Sybiha's remarks underline the diplomatic engagement between India and Ukraine as hostilities continue and concerns grow over security, navigation and the wider humanitarian and economic consequences of the conflict.
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