Prime Minister Narendra Modi has met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the G7 summit. Even though the two leaders have spoken virtually before, this is their first in-person meeting since the beginning of Russia's special operation in Ukraine.
The Prime Minister's Office shared via Twitter photographs of the meeting, at which India's national security advisor Ajit Doval was also present.
"Over the past year and a half, we have spoken on the phone but after Glasgow, after a long time, we finally have an opportunity to meet. The war in Ukraine is a very big issue for the whole world. It has had many different effects on the whole world," India's Prime Minister said in an opening remark.
During the meeting, the prime minister told Zelensky that India will "do whatever we can" to resolve Ukrainian crisis.
The G7 club of rich democracies reportedly contemplated additional sanctions against Russia at this week's meeting and measures against third parties evading the Western sanctions. The group comprises Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the US and the UK. The EU is a "non-enumerable" memeber.
The Western sanctions have largely been circumvented by India, China and many developing nations. New Delhi and Beijing have emerged particularly as the largest importers of Russian crude since last year, in a blow to Western efforts against Moscow.
India has repeatedly slammed the West for pressing it to reduce its trade with Russia because of the special military operation in Ukraine.