Emine Dzhaparova, the first deputy foreign minister of Ukraine, has expressed to her Indian counterparts Kiev’s wish to forge a more solid and intimate connection with New Delhi.
On Wednesday, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had received a letter from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
During a meeting on Tuesday, Dzhaparova sent the letter to Meenakshi Lekhi, Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture. The MEA said that the next round of bilateral foreign office meetings will take place in Kyiv on a mutually agreeable date.
On Wednesday, the Ukrainian First Deputy Foreign Minister returned from her three-day trip to India. It was Ukraine’s first trip to India since Russia started invading the eastern European nation on February 24 of last year. According to the MEA, Ukraine requested more humanitarian help, including pharmaceuticals and medical supplies.
The Ukrainian deputy foreign minister also suggested that Indian businesses can benefit from upgrading Ukraine’s infrastructure during her meeting with Secretary (West) in the MEA Sanjay Verma. The MEA released a statement stating that “Dzhaparova, during her visit, highlighted Ukraine’s desire to build a stronger and closer relationship with India.”
It claimed that Dzhaparova’s visit to India will promote bilateral cooperation. The MEA reported on the meeting between Lekhi and Dzhaparova, saying that in addition to talking about a broad variety of bilateral and global matters of shared interest, she sent Prime Minister Modi a letter from President Zelenskyy.
According to the MEA, the bilateral agenda for the meetings between Verma and Dzhaparova included topics such as the economy, defense, humanitarian aid, and international problems of shared concern. She informed Secretary (West) about the current state of affairs in Ukraine. The next round of Foreign Office Consultations will take place in Kyiv on a mutually suitable date, the statement stated.
According to the MEA, Verma highlighted that India has sent Ukraine medications, medical supplies, and will provide Ukraine school vehicles, among other things. The MEA announced that India will host the next meeting of the intergovernmental commission between the two parties.
The deputy foreign minister said, “With regard to the issue of Indian medical students, Ukraine will permit foreign medical students to take the Unified State Qualification Exam in their country of residence,” according to the MEA.
Prime Minister Modi has had many conversations with both Ukrainian President Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin since the situation in Ukraine broke out in February of last year.
On October 4 of last year, during a phone call with President Zelenskyy, Modi said that there can be “no military solution” and that India is prepared to support any peace initiatives.
India has not yet denounced Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and has insisted that diplomacy and communication are the only ways to find a solution to the problem.