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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday pressed Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the conflict in Ukraine soon, saying “today’s era is not of war” even as he called for finding ways to address the global food and energy security crisis.
In a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, Modi also underlined the importance of “democracy, dialogue and diplomacy” while calling for an early cessation of hostilities in Ukraine.
“Today the biggest worry before the world, especially developing countries, is food security, fuel security, fertilisers. We must find ways on these problems and you will also have to consider it. We will get an opportunity to talk about these issues,” he said in his opening remarks.
On his part, Putin told Modi that he was aware of India’s concerns over the Ukraine conflict and that Russia would do everything possible to end it as soon as possible. “I know about your position on the conflict in Ukraine. I know about your concerns. I know that you share these concerns and we all want an end to all of these as soon as possible,” Putin said.
It was the first in-person meeting between the two leaders after the Ukraine conflict began in February.
Earlier, Modi called for the member nations to build resilient supply chains in the wake of the Covid pandemic, at the 22nd SCO Summit on Thursday.
