By Aditya Prakash
Kazan (Russia), October 16 (ANI): India’s Ambassador to Russia Vinay Kumar said India remains in contact with Russian interlocutors to promote dialogue and diplomacy for an early resolution of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, reiterating New Delhi's position that diplomatic engagement should be prioritised to end hostilities.
Speaking to ANI, Kumar said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar have repeatedly emphasised the need for dialogue and diplomacy to resolve conflicts.
"The Prime Minister has repeatedly said, and so has the Minister of External Affairs, that dialogue and diplomacy should be prioritised for the resolution of the conflict; any conflict, for that matter. We remain in touch with the interlocutors on the Russian side also to see that dialogue and diplomacy are used to expeditiously resolve this conflict," Kumar said.
India has consistently called for a peaceful resolution of the Russia-Ukraine conflict through diplomatic engagement and has maintained contact with both Moscow and Kyiv as part of its efforts to encourage an end to the hostilities.
Earlier this month, the Consultative Committee of the Ministry of External Affairs reviewed India's diplomatic efforts to help restore peace in Ukraine, including Modi's meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Bishkek and Jaishankar's engagements with Ukrainian and Russian officials.
During the discussions, members highlighted the Prime Minister's position that the prolonged conflict must give way to peace. Jaishankar has also reiterated India's willingness to contribute in any manner possible to bring the war to an end.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has previously praised Modi's efforts, saying the Indian Prime Minister had ideas aimed at finding mutually acceptable solutions to the conflict. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has also acknowledged India's diplomatic engagement, describing its proposal as the most comprehensive among several international peace initiatives under consideration, according to RBC-Ukraine.
Separately, Kumar urged Indian citizens to exercise caution against fraudulent overseas employment offers that could lead them to join the Russian military.
The Ambassador said Indian authorities have regularly issued advisories warning citizens against falling prey to such offers and advised prospective overseas job seekers to verify employment opportunities with the Indian Embassy before travelling to Russia.
"We have been regularly issuing advisories for Indian citizens not to fall prey to these offers. Anybody who gets an offer to work abroad, including in Russia, should contact the embassy, get the offer verified before traveling to Russia so that we avoid this kind of malpractices which attract Indian citizens in a harmful way," Kumar said.
Earlier in September, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said that 227 Indian nationals had been recruited into the Russian armed forces, of whom 139 had been discharged while 51 had passed away.
India has been working to assist its nationals recruited into the Russian military through misleading job offers and has repeatedly urged citizens to exercise due diligence before accepting overseas employment. (ANI)
India in contact with Russian interlocutors to expedite Ukraine peace efforts: Ambassador Vinay Kumar
