The summit between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin ended without agreement on a ceasefire in Ukraine. India on Saturday welcomed the summit between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin which ended without agreement on a ceasefire in Ukraine, with the external affairs ministry saying that the world wants an early end to the conflict.
In a message thanking Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for his wishes on India’s Independence Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi wished “our friends in Ukraine a future marked by peace, progress and prosperity”.
Trump and Putin met for almost three hours in Alaska for the first US-Russia summit since the Russian leader launched the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Both leaders delivered statements after their meeting without taking questions from reporters, and there were no clear indications how the two sides intend to move forward on ending the war that has killed or injured more than a million people from Ukraine and Russia.
“India welcomes the summit meeting in Alaska between US President Donald Trump and President Vladimir Putin of Russia. Their leadership in the pursuit of peace is highly commendable,” external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a brief statement. “India appreciates the progress made in the summit. The way forward can only be through dialogue and diplomacy. The world wants to see an early end to the conflict in Ukraine,” he said.
Modi responded to Zelensky’s wishes on the Independence Day on Friday on social media, saying he deeply valued the joint commitment of both sides to forging “even closer ties between India and Ukraine”. Modi added: “We earnestly wish our friends in Ukraine a future marked by peace, progress and prosperity.”
Zelensky, in his social media post congratulating the people and leadership of India on the Independence Day, had said: “We hope that India will contribute to efforts aimed at ending the war, so that our freedom and sovereignty are truly secure.”
Following the talks in Alaska, Trump said at the media interaction with Putin that both sides had agreed on “many points”, though they hadn’t “quite got there” on some issues. Putin spoke of the two sides reaching an understanding that will allow them to get closer to the goal of ensuring Ukraine’s security and “open the way to peace in Ukraine”. Both leaders didn’t give details.
The Indian side closely followed the summit, mainly because of Trump’s threat of imposing secondary sanctions on India because of continued Russian oil purchases. Trump recently slapped a 25% tariff on India for buying Russian energy, while a 25% reciprocal tariff on Indian goods has already become effective.
Trump has contended that India is profiting by selling much of its Russian oil purchases on the open market, and also financing the Russian war machine. India has accused the US and the European Union (EU) of adopting double standards on sanctions and said it will take all necessary steps to protect its national interests.
Ahead of the summit, Trump had set August 8 as the deadline for Russia to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine or face punishing sanctions. He said in a social media post after the meeting with Putin and phone calls with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and several European Leaders that the “best way to end the horrific war between Russia and Ukraine is to go directly to a Peace Agreement, which would end the war, and not a mere Ceasefire Agreement”.
Both Trump and Zelensky announced they will meet in Washington on Monday and this could be followed by a trilateral meeting with Putin. “Ukraine reaffirms its readiness to work with maximum effort to achieve peace…It is important that America’s strength has an impact on the development of the situation,” Zelensky said on social media. He backed Trump’s proposal for a trilateral meeting between Ukraine, the US and Russia.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called for an end to hostilities and a return to the path of dialogue and diplomacy in his engagements with Putin and Zelensky since the start of the Russian invasion. Both Putin and Zelensky dialled Modi ahead of the meeting in Alaska to brief him on the situation. Modi made separate visits to Russia and Ukraine last year and urged the two leaders to return to negotiations to find a peaceful solution. He also said talks cannot succeed under the shadow of the gun and a solution cannot be found on the battlefield.
India has never publicly censured Russia’s actions or participated in international efforts aimed at ending the conflict. Indian officials have said that New Delhi played a role in passing messages between Moscow and Kyiv.
