Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday accused India of helping sustain Russia’s “war economy” through purchases of crude oil, even as he called on New Delhi to take on a greater role in ensuring the success of Kyiv’s ongoing peace efforts.
A Russian strike on Ukraine’s largest children’s hospital that coincided with the start of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Moscow last month made it clear that President Vladimir Putin does not respect India or its leader, Zelensky said while briefing the media after his talks with Modi.
India has “global influence [as] a very big country…and a very big influence on the Russian economy. Today, you have it, and it’s true because really a lot of export possibilities for Russia [were] closed but India is open,” he said. Zelensky said he spoke openly with Modi about India’s oil purchases from Russia, which is generating billions of dollars that help fund Russia’s military.
“It’s about billions which are coming back, which Putin…uses it only because he has now really, officially, a war economy,” Zelensky said. “So, he [Putin] has to feel how war is expensive, and his society has to feel it.”
He added, “The role of India – if you will stop imports of oil, Putin will have huge challenges…Prime Minister Modi wants peace more than Putin, this is the problem…The problem is that Putin doesn’t want [peace].”
Referring to Modi’s visit to Russia during July 8-9 for the annual summit with Putin, Zelensky sarcastically referred to the Russian leader talking to Modi about peace at around the same time that a missile strike hit the children’s hospital in Kyiv.
“I don’t have all the details of the Moscow meeting, but I said to the prime minister, with whom you have a deal? You speak with him, he’s speaking [about how] he wants peace but at this moment exactly he is attacking a hospital,” Zelensky said.
“If during the official visit of the prime minister, you attack the children in the hospital, it’s a very important moment…So, it means that he doesn’t respect the Indian prime minister.”
Zelensky had reacted angrily to the attack on the hospital coinciding with images of Modi hugging Putin during a meeting at the Russian leader’s private residence in Moscow. “It is a huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts to see the leader of the world’s largest democracy hug the world’s most bloody criminal in Moscow on such a day,” he had posted on X at the time.
The Russian side can give the impression that the attack had occurred because Putin doesn’t control the military but this wouldn’t be correct, Zelensky said. “Putin controls everything, so he can’t say that he doesn’t control his army,” he said.
Zelensky said he had discussed Ukraine’s ongoing peace summit mechanism with Modi and how India could be a part of these peace efforts but made it clear that Kyiv wouldn’t make compromises on principles or values. “I spoke about it with the prime minister, we want him at the [next] peace summit,” he said.
“But we don’t change our territories on any propositions,” he said, adding that there will also be no change on values such as freedom and democracy.
India attended several preparatory meetings and sent a senior diplomat to the first peace summit hosted by Switzerland in June but didn’t sign off on the joint communique. The peace summit mechanism is based on Zelensky’s 10-point peace formula of 2022 that envisages the withdrawal of Russian troops and restoration of Ukraine’s borders.
Zelensky said India would be welcome to take up efforts related to any of the 10 points of the peace formula or come up with its own vision or viewpoints to take the peace efforts forward. He said he had even told Modi that the next global peace summit could be held in India.
“It’s a big country, it’s a great democracy – the largest – but I want to be frank…We won’t be able to conduct a peace summit in a country which hasn’t joined the communique of the [first] peace summit. Nobody is exerting any pressure but that is logical,” he said.
Responding to a question on when he would take up Modi’s invitation to visit India, Zelensky said: “Yes, (I have plans to visit India) because when you begin a …strategic partnership, and you begin some dialogue, I think that you don’t need to lose time…and that’s why I think it will be good to meet together again.”
He added, “I need very much to find a key to your country because I very much need your country on our side, not balancing between us and Russia. It’s not about your historical choice…That’s why I’ll be happy to come to India as soon as your government and prime minister will be ready to see me.”
