New Delhi: Amid media reports about how Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s personal intervention had stopped the Russia-Ukraine in 2022, he said that it was the strength of the Indian flag that it became a guarantee even during the conflict. While speaking to the news agency ANI which was released on Monday, he said not only Indians but also foreign nationals adorned the Tricolour in order to get rescued from the war region.

“I have been very friendly with both the presidents (Russia and Ukraine). I can publicly say to President Putin that this is not the time for war. I can also say publicly to Ukraine that we should follow the path of dialogue,” underscoring that “this is because I have credibility,” PM Modi said.

When PM Modi’s personal intervention saves Indians in Yemen

PM Modi said that although there have been a lot of ongoing discussions about Ukraine, he has seen many such incidents since 2014. The Prime Minister also referred to the direct call from him to the Saudi King in the year 2015, which helped India evacuate on a mass scale Indians and foreigners were stranded in war-torn Yemen when bombing by Saudi Arabia and its allies in Yemen made it difficult to evacuate Indian nationals.

The Prime Minister said, “I spoke to the Saudi King and told him that I want to bring people from Yemen there. So your bombarding is going on, we are not able to do it, How will you help us? So he said, Please try to understand me. And Sushma ji has said all these things in her interview. There used to be a period at the request of India in which there was no bombarding. And at that time, we used to take our people out in aircraft. We brought about 5000 people from Yemen It was the same in Ukraine.”

India’s stand on dialogue and diplomacy

In March this year, PM Modi held separate telephonic conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Prime Minister Modi, as he dialled Russian President Putin, congratulated him for his re-election to the top office, as well as both leaders agreed to intensify efforts towards expanding the India-Russia ‘Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership’.

He reaffirmed India’s stand on dialogue and diplomacy as a way for the resolution of the conflict. Whereas, in conversation with Zelenskyy, PM Modi had reiterated India’s people-centric approach and called for dialogue and diplomacy as the way forward in the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The Prime Minister noted that India supports all efforts for an early and peaceful resolution of all issues between the parties.

He added that India would continue to do everything within its means to support a peaceful solution. President Zelenskyy appreciated India’s continued humanitarian assistance to the people of Ukraine. The two leaders agreed to remain in touch.

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