PM Modi & Prez Zelenskyy Meet for First Time After Russia’s Ukraine Invasion

Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Japan’s Hiroshima on Saturday. Both leaders held their first personal meeting since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

PM Modi is in Hiroshima to attend three sessions at the G7 summit. He will also tour Papua New Guinea and Australia. The Ukrainian president is attending the G7 summit following an invitation by Japan, the current chair of the G7.

Ukraine’s First Deputy Foreign Minister Emine Dzhaparova visited India last month and handed over a letter from President Zelenskyy to PM Modi to Minister of State for External Affairs Meenakshi Lekhi.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has maintained that the Russia-Ukraine conflict can only be resolved through dialogue and diplomacy, and that “India is ready to contribute to any peace efforts.”

India abstained from UN General Assembly resolutions to condemn the invasion. India supports a peaceful resolution to the Ukraine crisis and is ready to contribute constructively within the UN and beyond, PM Modi said.