News Analysis India

Tag: Ukraine war

  • Ukraine crisis will have consequences for India-Russia ties: Envoy

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The current crisis in Ukraine will have consequences for the whole world, including for Russia-India relations, and the extent of its impact cannot be envisaged now, Russian Ambassador Denis Alipov said on Saturday.

    At the same time, he said India can take advantage of the situation to bolster economic ties with Russia as Moscow’s Western partners have refused to cooperate with it.

    The Russian envoy said the current situation has presented a “window of opportunity” for Indian businesses to expand their presence in Russia and that it would make sense for India to take a closer look at economic cooperation with Russia.

    The remarks of the ambassador featured in a video posted by the Russian embassy on its Twitter handle.

    “This crisis will have consequences for the whole world, including for the Russia-India relations. To what extent, it will be reflected, probably no one can say now,” Alipov said.

    “We perceive from the fact that our relations are developing in the interests of the two countries and they are of strategic nature. There may be an impact in terms of transactions,” he said.

    Referring to the possible impact of the Western sanctions on India-Russia ties, he said there is a bilateral mechanism for mutual settlements of transactions in national currencies.

    “There is a working bilateral mechanism for mutual settlements in national currencies which is already being used. The only question is how to use it on a wider scale,” he said.

    The ambassador suggested that the use of the mechanism widely will help in offsetting the impact of the sanctions.

    “It makes sense for the Indians to take advantage of the situation when many Western partners refused to cooperate with us, and more actively penetrate the Russian market,” he said.

    “This is a window of opportunity for Indian businesses. It also makes sense for India to take a closer look at cooperation with Russia,” Alipov said.

    The ambassador also complimented India for its “independent” foreign policy.

    “We have repeatedly stated that we welcome the independent foreign policy of India and strengthening of its role and influence in the international arena,” he said.

    India has abstained from resolutions at the United Nations which were brought up to criticise Russia for its military aggression on Ukraine.

    “We never put any pressure on her (India) and do not set any conditions as you know. The Indians are now under severe pressure in the US,” Alipov said.

    On the evacuation of stranded Indians from conflict zones in Ukraine, the Russian ambassador said his government has been trying its best to take them out from eastern Ukrainian cities of Kharkiv, Sumy and Pisochyn.

    Alipov claimed that around 3,000 Indians are stuck in Kharkiv, nearly 900 in Pisochyn and 670 in Sumy.

    However, at a media briefing on Saturday, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said the safe exit of Indians from Kharkiv and Pisochyn is almost complete.

    “Pisochyn has been evacuated of all Indian citizens. The mission will continue to remain in touch with them through their journey,” the Indian embassy in Ukraine tweeted in the evening.

    Bagchi said India is now focusing on evacuating around 700 Indian students from Sumy, a city in eastern Ukraine that is around 60 km from the Russian border.

    “The Indians turned to us for help and we responded. We created special groups that are ready to take the Indians to Russian territory and then transport them to India.”

    “But the catch is that the fighting in these areas continues and where the Indians are, our forces are not. There is no way to pick them up. We have to meet in some places that are not under fire from Ukraine,” Alipov said.

    He said the Russian side doesn’t have access to these areas and that fighting has been going on with the Ukrainian troops.

    The envoy said Russia has kept ready hundreds of buses along its borders for transporting the stranded Indians.

    “Our buses are waiting and will wait as long as it takes,” he said.

  • ‘Spent three days at bunker without food, water’: Bengal students narrate their Ukraine ordeal

    By PTI

    KOLKATA: Students from West Bengal, enrolled in medical colleges in Ukraine, said they ran out of food and water in bunkers, made arrangements on their own to reach the border checkpoints, and walked in sub-zero temperatures as they recounted their struggles to return to their homeland from the war-torn eastern Europe country.

    Nur Hassan, a student from Kaliachak in Malda, recalled how he along with 50 other students from India, had to hire a bus on March 1 from his institute in Kyiv to reach the Romanian border after undergoing numerous checks by the Ukrainian army.

    “For three days, we spent hours in a bunker at our medical college literally going without food and water and hearing sounds of constant bombardment. As time was running out, we requisitioned buses on our own and left for the Ukraine-Romanian border. We were stranded there for hours by the Ukraine army,” he said.

    After crossing the border, the Indian embassy, with help from the Romanian government, facilitated their return journey to New Delhi.

    Another student from Alipurduar in north Bengal, Gaurav Banik said “I feel so relieved after coming back to my native place on Thursday but am worried about the safety of others who are stranded there.”

    Banik, a fifth-year student of Kharkiv National Medical University, said he along with others had to wait for an entire day before getting onto a bus.

    “Despite having all the travel documents, the journey was delayed by several hours at the Ukraine-Poland border before we were finally allowed by the forces, to cross over to the other side.

    “It was a terrible sight – thousands of Ukrainian families, including elderly and women, scrambling to cross over along with the foreign nationals. The Ukrainian security forces were at times firing in the air to bring discipline among the people in the queue. We heaved a sigh of relief after boarding the aircraft.”

    Student of Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, Tiyasha Biswas, said she and five of her friends had set off from the institute but were forced to get down from the vehicle, 16 km from the Romania border.

    After covering the distance in 11 hours in sub-zero temperature, they had to wait for hours before crossing over to the other side.

    “Happy to be back at my Barasat home but feeling exhausted. Don’t know what lies in future,” Tiasha said.

    Hamza Kabir, a third-semester student of Uzhhorod National University in Uzhhorod said he went without food and toilet facilities while waiting to cross over to Hungary.

    “I had such an amazing experience after being admitted to this institute located in a picturesque place three years back. The people were also good. Everything changed to fear, destruction, and disbelief as the war with Russia started,” Kabir recalled relaxing in his Kolkata home.

    However, all the students had a word of praise for the locals, saying they were given food, fruit juice, and water free of cost on way to the border checkpoints.

    Ukraine had closed its airspace for civilian flights on February 24 and India has been evacuating its citizens stranded in the war-hit nation from its neighbouring countries such as Romania, Hungary, and Poland.

  • 21 Indian sailors stuck at Mykolaiv port in war-hit Ukraine: Shipping agency

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: As many as 21 Indian sailors on board a merchant ship are stuck for quite some time at the Port of Mykolaiv in war-hit Ukraine but all of them are “safe” and in “regular contact” with their families and the ship manning agency, according to the agency founder and CEO Sanjay Prashar.

    Prashar said that 24 other ships are also docked at the port and have Indian sailors onboard as well.

    MV Maritime (the ship manning agency) is watchful of the developments and keeping all authorities concerned in the loop including the External Affairs Ministry, the Indian Embassy and sector regulator Director General of Shipping, he said.

    DG Shipping Amitabh Kumar was not available for comments.

    The crew has not come out of the vessel since the war broke out between Russia and Ukraine late last month and a strict vigil is being maintained on the ship, Prashar said.

    “Presently the vessel is berthed at Port Mykolaiv itself. There are a total of 25 ships, including ours. There are other ships which have got Indian seafarers. As far as our ship is concerned, both the crew and ship are presently safe.”

    “The internet and satellite communication onboard are working. We are at present in touch with all the crew and their families. Also, the crew themselves are also in direct touch with their family members,” Prashar told PTI.

    He said that as per information available with the company, the Port is not working and the “Russian forces probably are very close to the Port on the Black Sea coast”, he said.

    “If the Russian forces come into the Port and they allow couple of ships to leave then it is fine.

    Otherwise, we would need some assistance from the port authority, including some tug boats and other kinds of services to allow the vessel to safely depart,” he said.

    Prashar said in an emergency, if the company have to evacuate its crew, the nearest Poland border is 900 km far and going to some safe location in Kyiv would mean a travel of 500 km from the port city, adding “so for them to reach any of these two places right now is not possible.”

    “We are very watchful. So, instead of staying in a bunker or inside Ukraine anywhere else, the expert and the Master judgement is better stay on board,” he added.

    Nevertheless, the company is submitting a status report to the Indian Embassy every day, he stated.

    He also said there are a couple of other agencies that are involved in this issue such as the International Water Transport Federation (IWTF) and the National Union of Seafarers of India (NUSI).

    According to IWTF Executive Board Member and NUSI General Secretary Abdulgani Serang, his association is in constant touch with its Ukrainian counterpart over the issue.

  • Ukraine war: MEA says 13 flights will bring home 2,200 Indians on Sunday

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: Thirteen flights with more than 2,200 Indian evacuees will operate from Ukraine’s neighbouring countries to India on Sunday, the Ministry of External Affairs said.

    “During the next 24 hours, we have close to 13 flights scheduled to bring back Indians who have crossed the Ukrainian border on the Western side,” said MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi.

    There are close to 300 students in the safe zone of Pesochin and all of them would be transported to the border by Saturday. There are no Indians left in Kharkiv and the only area of concern is Sumy where nearly 700 Indian students have been stranded.

    Sumy is just about 60 km away from the Russian border but since there is constant shelling, it isn’t safe for students to step out.

    ALSO READ | ‘We will leave no stone unturned for safe evacuation of students’: Indian envoy to Ukraine

    “The students are largely concentrated in two camps which is safe for them. They did face some shortage of water and electricity outages yesterday, but all that has been restored now. We are trying all options to get them out with safety and they continue to be our primary area of concern,” Bagchi said.

    Around 17,333 Indians have returned to India from Ukraine since the first advisory was issued by the Indian embassy in Kyiv.

    Out of these 13,330 have returned through the 63 evacuation flights that have been arranged by the Indian government. Around 4,000 Indians had returned prior to the outbreak of the conflict.

    India has been pressing for a ceasefire from both Russia and Ukraine, and till that actually happens it would not be safe to evacuate the students who are stranded there.

    According to some estimates, there aren’t more than 1000 Indians left in Ukraine now. Most of those who have crossed the border would return to India by Sunday. 

  • Ukraine discussed, but Indo-Pacific remains core focus of Quad’s agenda: MEA

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: India on Friday said Indo-Pacific remained the core focus of the Quad even if the situation in Ukraine was discussed at a meeting of the leaders of the coalition.

    Leaders of the Quad, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, US President Joe Biden, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and their Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida, held a virtual meeting on Thursday that saw a discussion on the Ukraine crisis.

    A joint readout released by the White House said the Quad leaders discussed the ongoing conflict and humanitarian crisis in Ukraine besides assessing its “broader implications”.

    External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said at a media briefing that it is natural for leaders, having such good rapport among themselves, to discuss topical issues when they meet.

    “As you saw from the readouts, Ukraine was discussed naturally. But let me just emphasise the Indo-Pacific remains the core focus of the Quad’s agenda and you will see that coming in terms of positive activities, initiatives and efforts all four countries are making,” he said.

    Bagchi said the message at the meeting was very clear that although there is a crisis in Ukraine, all four countries were trying to take forward the agenda of the Quad that was firmed up at an in-person summit of the leaders of the coalition in Washington last September.

    “From our perspective, while of course there’s a very serious situation. In Ukraine, it’s not as though challenges in other parts of the world have vanished,” he said.

    “In the Indo-Pacific, the challenge is there and the agenda that the leaders of these four countries have signed up to, that is Indo-Pacific being at the core of the Quad’s agenda is something that they want to push ahead with,” he said.

    In his remarks at the virtual meeting, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for a return to a path of “dialogue and diplomacy” in defusing the crisis in Ukraine.

    “They (Quad leaders) agreed to stand up a new humanitarian assistance and disaster relief mechanism which will enable the Quad to meet future humanitarian challenges in the Indo-Pacific and provide a channel for communication as they each address and respond to the crisis in Ukraine,” the joint readout stated.

    It said the Quad leaders agreed to meet in person in Tokyo in the coming months.

    An Indian statement said, “Developments in Ukraine were discussed in the meeting, including its humanitarian implications. The prime minister emphasised the need to return to a path of dialogue and diplomacy.”

    Modi underlined that the Quad must remain focused on its “core objective” of promoting peace, stability and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region and he also reiterated the importance of adhering to the United Nations Charter, international law, and respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, it said.

  • Government to fund treatment of Indian student shot at in Ukraine: MEA

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The government has decided to bear the medical expenses of Indian student Harjot Singh, who is recovering at a hospital in the Ukrainian capital city Kyiv after sustaining bullet injuries, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Friday.

    On February 27, 31-year-old Singh, along with his two friends, boarded a cab for the western Ukrainian city of Lviv in a bid to escape Kyiv.

    He received four bullets, including one in the chest.

    Singh is a native of Delhi.

    “We are aware of the case. Our embassy is in touch with them (family). He is currently I think in a hospital in Kyiv,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.

    “We are trying to ascertain his exact medical status, including his readiness to be able to move,” Bagchi said and hoped that India will be able to bring back Singh and others, who were left behind “somehow”.

    Bagchi also said three transport aircraft of the Indian Air Force carried relief materials for Ukraine on Friday as part of India’s humanitarian assistance.

    The first aircraft carrying six tonnes of materials headed for Romania while the second plane left for Slovakia with nine tonnes of supplies.

    The third aircraft transported eight tonnes of supplies to Poland, he said.

    India sent the first tranche of humanitarian assistance comprising medicines and other relief materials to Ukraine via Poland on Wednesday.

    India decided to provide the aid to help people crowding along Ukraine’s borders to exit the war-torn nation.

  • 20,000 Indians have left Ukraine, about 3,000 still stranded: MEA

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: Around 20,000 Indians have left Ukraine. The two areas where there is a relatively higher concentration of Indians is Sumy and Kharkiv.

    “There are over 700 Indians in Sumy. It’s a conflict zone and there is heavy shelling. We are restricted in our evacuation process. We are exploring all options. Westward evacuation through the Russian border is an option too, but since it is around 60 km away and in a conflict zone, we can’t risk the lives of our people,” said foreign ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi.

    MEA hopes for a ceasefire around Sumy as then it would be safe to evacuate Indians stuck there.

    In Kharkiv, there are approximately 300 Indians and evacuation efforts are challenged there too due to shelling. 

    In Pesochin, Indian students left the place on Thursday through five buses that the Indian government had arranged for them. “We are exploring all options of buses, trains whatever we can manage for our people. The role of student coordinators has been tremendous in this entire evacuation process and we will continue our efforts till the last Indian is out,” Bagchi added.

    ALSO READ | IMA urges PM to accommodate Ukraine-returned medical students in Indian colleges

    The Indian government has been able to bring 20,000 Indians out of Ukraine. Since the evacuation process began nearly 48 flights have been used to bring them back to India. Around 16 flights are scheduled to bring back those in the bordering countries of Ukraine – which include four Indian Air Force C17 aircraft – on Saturday. Around 10,500 Indians have returned to India.

    The majority of Indians who are out of the Ukrainian border would be back in India by Saturday.

    There are approximately 2000 to 3000 more Indians left in Ukraine. These figures are higher than the earlier projections of 20,000 as many obviously would not have registered with the embassy.

    Meanwhile, the Indian government has been getting requests from students of other nationalities like Bangladesh and Nepal for evacuation and they have said they would do the needful.”One Bangladeshi student has flown in with us,” Bagchi said.

    Once most Indians are out of Ukraine, the government could explore the possibility of putting the few who are left behind on commercial flights and bear the expenses.

  • Diplomacy paves way for evacuation 

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI:  Caught between the two Cold War-era superpowers, India has had to do a delicate balancing act so as not to annoy either side. However, with thousands of Indian students trapped in war-torn Ukraine, the government had to turn to Russia for their safe evacuation.

    Despite facing intense pressure from the US to vote against Russia, India once again abstained on a UN General Assembly resolution that deplored Russia’s aggression on Wednesday. It had twice earlier abstained from voting against Russia in the UN Security Council. It is India’s decision to abstain that has facilitated the evacuation of its nationals stranded in Ukraine, according to sources. More than 60 per cent of Indians are now out of Ukraine. And if the evacuation process goes as per plan, then most should be out before the end of this week, sources said.

    PM Narendra Modi has had two telephonic exchanges with Russian President Vladimir Putin since February 24, with safe passage to Indians being his main concern, besides de-escalation of the hostilities.In his explanation of vote, India’s Permanent Representative to the UN T S Tirumurthi said, “We demand safe and uninterrupted passage for all Indian nationals, who are stranded in Ukraine, particularly Kharkhiv and other cities. We have reiterated this demand to both the Russian Federation and Ukraine. This remains our foremost priority.” 

  • Operation Ganga: PM Modi meets batch of students returned from Ukraine

    Express News Service

    LUCKNOW: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Thursday,  wrapped up his hectic day in Uttar Pradesh after addressing two poll rallies in Jaunpur and Chandauli by interacting with a group of students who have recently returned to various parts of the state from the war-torn Ukraine.

    On his way back to Delhi, the PM met the students at Lal Bahadur Shastri Airport in Varanasi in the evening listening to their harrowing experiences and reassuring them that rest of their friends still stranded in Ukraine would be brought back soon.

    “I can understand the mental state you have gone through at such a young age. Your agony is beyond words and imagination,” said the prime minister in his brief interaction with the students.

    The prime minister maintained that despite all the adversities in the strife torn country, the government of India was leaving no stone unturned to evacuate remaining students safely.

    “Operation Ganga—the evacuation is on under adverse conditions. But be rest assured that all Indians will be brought to the country safely,” Modi said.

    Students including Abhishek Kesari, who had been studying at Ivano University Frankis, Divya Srivastav, who was studying at Ternopil Medical University, Tausifa Naaz, who was pursuing MBBS-I at Uzhhorod University said that PM listened to them and empathized with them. 

    “He assured us that efforts to bring back rest of the India students would be intensified,” said the students extending their gratitude to the PM and government of India for their safe evacuation.

    “PM initially asked about our experience and problems we faced in reaching border of countries like Hungary and Romania,” said Tausifa Naaz.

    About her experience in Ukraine Naaz said, “We realized the efforts of the Government of India and the impact of its diplomacy to convince Russian authorities to stop the assault and give window to ensure safe passage to Indian students from Ukraine. Students from no other country like Pakistan of Turkey are getting this kind of support from their country or government.”

    Besides, Neha Patel, Saurabh Kumar Verma, Unnati Patel, Shah Faizal, Rahul Singh of Varanasi, Abhishek Yadav and Himanshu Gupta of Jaunpur, Shweta Dubey of Ghazipur, Sandhya Singh of Pratapgarh, Vishal Kumar Maurya, Ruchi Pandey and Ritik Diwakar of Prayagraj, were among those who interacted with the PM.

    The students also shared how they experienced the power of tricolor. 

    “As we were getting special treatment by Ukrainian forces, the students from Pakistan, Turkey, Nigeria and many other countries also mounted Indian flag on their buses so that they could reach borders of Poland, Hungary, Romania and others to stay safe till any help come for them,” they said.

  • Ukraine war may affect India too, need to be alert: Dr Veerendra Heggaqde

    Express News Service

    CHITRADURGA: Negligence regarding the Ukraine-Russia war may be a wrong move as India is likely to face the heat of the war. 

    We the citizens of India should be alert and be prepared to bail ourselves out of the problems that may arise in future, was the opinion of Dharmadhikari of Dharmastala Dr D Veerendra Hegde on Thursday.

    Speaking to TNIE, he said that going by the present scenario, it is too premature to know when the war will end, as there are chances of it extending to other neighbouring countries of Ukraine and Russia so we should be alert and be prepared to protect our citizens. 

    We too should be prepared to evacuate the stranded population in case of expansion of the warzone, he advised.

    Highly ambitious Russia is dreaming of forming USSR again, which once was disintegrated, hence they are waging war against their neighbours and the war against Ukraine is a part of it. 

    This will really create problems in future and hence we want to safeguard the interests of our students and nationals staying in the Ukraine, Russia and other surrounding countries, he advised.

    World peace need of the hour

    Advocating the need of world peace , Dr Hegde said: “We have to pray for immediate ceasefire and peace in the world, as it is the only solution for the survival of Humanity.”

    “We are facing the heat of the war as our students and nationals are stranded there. Repercussions will grave as the international prices of the crude oil will skyrocket and it will pinch our pockets in future with the increase in inflation affecting the lives of common man,” he explained.

    Backing the Central government over the evacuation of the Indian students from the warzone, he said: “We should have evacuated the students much earlier. A small negligence has put us in big trouble.”

    He also said: “Now we want to be on high alert and keep a close watch on the war situation, in case the war spreads over other countries around Ukraine, we should be prepared to evacuate Indians situated there.”

    The best thing at the moment is to evacuate the stranded Indians from Ukraine as early as possible and there should be safe passage for the Indian nationals along with the other foreign nationals situated in Ukraine, he added. He also expressed grief over the death of Indian medical student Naveen Shekharappa Gyana Goudara.