Modi received the Order of St Andrew the Apostle the First-Called

NEW DELHI: Visiting Prime Minister Narendra Modi emphasised in his talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow that a solution to the Ukraine war cannot be found in the battlefield, adding efforts for peace do not succeed in the midst of bombs and bullets.

The talks came amid reports of a Russian cruise missile bombing a children’s hospital in Ukraine’s capital Kyiv. Modi said in his televised opening remarks at the summit talks on Tuesday, “Let’s take war, any conflict or terrorist acts: any person who believes in humanity feels pain when people die, and especially when innocent children die.

When we feel such pain, the heart simply explodes, and I had the opportunity to talk about these issues with you yesterday,” Modi told Putin. He said both discussed Ukraine and other matters extensively for over 4-5 hours.

For his part, Putin said, “I appreciate the attention India has paid to pressing issues, which includes efforts to finding ways to resolve the Ukraine crisis primarily through peaceful means.”

Later, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, “Modi is not claiming to be a mediator” on Ukraine. The Indian PM, he informed, suggested proposals to end the war. But he doubted if the NATO grouping would consider Modi’s peace initiatives.

In his opening remarks, Putin reaffirmed that Russia and India have a special and privileged partnership and that trade between the two countries grew by 66% last year and by 20% in the first quarter of 2024.

Putin also conferred on Modi the ‘Order of St Andrew the Apostle’ for his outstanding services in developing the strategic partnership between Russia and India. The award was announced in 2019.