The US has emphasized that India is a strategic partner with whom it maintains a full and open dialogue. The US has also urged India to make it clear to Russia that any resolution to the conflict in Ukraine must respect the UN charter, as well as Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.
This statement was made by State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller on Monday (8) when asked about Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ongoing visit to Russia and his meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“India is a strategic partner with whom we engage in a full and frank dialogue. And that includes our concerns about their relationship with Russia,” Miller said.
“We did just see Modi, like (Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor) Orban, meet with (Ukrainian) President (Volodymyr) Zelenskyy. We thought that was an important step to take. And we would urge India, as we do any country when it engages with Russia, to make clear that any resolution to the conflict in Ukraine needs to be one that respects the UN charter, that respects Ukraine’s territorial integrity, Ukraine’s sovereignty,” Miller said at a press briefing.
“I will look to Prime Minister Modi’s public remarks to see what he talked about. But as I said, we made quite clear directly with India our concerns about their relationship with Russia. So we would hope India and any other country, when they engage with Russia, would make clear that Russia should respect the UN charter, should respect Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” he said in response to another question.
India has been firmly defending its “special and privileged strategic partnership” with Russia and has maintained the momentum in the relationship despite the Ukraine conflict. India has not condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and has consistently called for a resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy.
Благодарю президента Путина за то, что он принял меня сегодня вечером в Ново-Огарево. С нетерпением жду завтрашних переговоров, которые, несомненно, будут способствовать дальнейшему укреплению дружбы между Индией и Россией. pic.twitter.com/FpcNEaN8qI
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 8, 2024
On Monday(8) night, Putin welcomed Modi at his official residence at Novo-Ogaryovo for a “private engagement.” Sources said that India’s position is that ‘a solution cannot be found on the battlefield,’ indicating that the Ukraine conflict was a key topic during their informal talks. On Tuesday, Modi will co-chair the 22nd India-Russia annual summit with Putin.
The focus of the 22nd India-Russia annual summit is expected to be on boosting bilateral cooperation in areas such as energy, security, trade, investment, and people-to-people exchanges. This is Modi’s first trip to Russia since its invasion of Ukraine more than two years ago.
