Indian PM Modi arrives in Kyiv for talks with Ukraine's Zelenskyy

India's Narendra Modi arrived in wartime Kyiv on Friday to hold talks with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the first trip by an Indian prime minister to Ukraine since Kyiv gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.

The visit comes at a volatile juncture in the war in Ukraine, with Ukrainian forces still in Russia's western Kursk region following their incursion on August 6 and Russian troops grinding out slow but steady advances in Ukraine's east.

The visit, which follows a trip by Modi to Moscow in July, is essential for Western-backed Kyiv, which has been trying to nurture diplomatic relations in the Global South to secure a fair settlement to end the war.

"Reached Kyiv earlier this morning. The Indian community accorded a warm welcome," Modi wrote on X. The Ukrainian railways company showed footage of him stepping off a train carriage and being received by Ukrainian officials.

In the run-up to the trip, he said he was looking forward to sharing "perspectives on peaceful resolution of the ongoing Ukraine conflict".

Reuters