India is a great power that determines its national interests and chooses its partners, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said, describing as "completely unjustified" the "enormous pressure" on New Delhi due to its energy cooperation with Moscow.
Russia on Wednesday said it is hoping for quick resolution of the issue relating to India's call for return of Indians recruited into the Russian Army as support staff and asserted their recruitment was purely a commercial matter.
'There is a solution only for the organisation of humanitarian corridors,' Advisor to the Head of the President's Office of Ukraine Mykhailo Podoliak said on Twitter.
'Geopolitically and diplomatically it's a very difficult situation for India.'
Jaishankar said the US ambassador will say what he feels is the thinking or position of his government.
The government has no say in where the country's refiners source oil from because these are commercial transactions.
Modi also invoked Mahatma Gandhi and Buddha to urge the delegates to draw inspiration from India's civilisational ethos and "focus not on what divides us, but on what unites us."
Leaders at the G20 summit on Wednesday called for an immediate end to the Ukraine conflict, holding that "today's era must not be of war", a formulation that echoed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's message to Russian President Vladimir Putin in September.
India and the US have collaborated through the past one month on launching a powerful satellite; are commencing joint production of GE Aerospace's F414 jet engines in India; India is participating in a massive three week-long military exercise in the Western Pacific, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Wang said that the situation in Ukraine has changed rapidly and that China laments the outbreak of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia and is 'extremely concerned' with the harm to civilians, China's state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
'And this will persist given the two-and-a-half-front threat we face.'
India's GDP is estimated to grow at 7.4 per cent in the financial year 2022-23 with rising prices triggered by the Russia-Ukraine conflict posing as the biggest challenge to the global economic recovery, Ficci's Economic Outlook Survey released on Sunday said. According to the survey, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is likely to start a rate hike cycle in the second half of 2022, while a repo rate hike of 50-75 bps is expected by the end of the current fiscal. The RBI is expected to continue supporting the ongoing economic recovery by keeping the repo rate unchanged in its April policy review, the survey said.
'Trump is likely being purposefully vague, hoping that this lack of clarity will pressure India, fearing the worst, to agree to scale back its imports of Russian oil.'
We have already suffered considerable collateral damage as a result of the war, and its continuance will continue to dampen our prospects for faster economic growth. We have a direct and legitimate interest in its early cessation, counsels former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
US President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met in Washington D.C. to discuss a range of issues including trade, defense, and energy. The two leaders announced plans to finalize "wonderful trade deals" for both countries, and Trump emphasized the need for India to purchase US oil and gas. Modi congratulated Trump on his second term and highlighted the importance of working together to further strengthen the India-US relationship. The meeting also addressed the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, with Modi reiterating India's commitment to peace.
'If there is a military standoff eyeball to eyeball on the western border, the Chinese could create problems by making movements in the north, in our northeast, which could involve us tying down some forces there so that could stretch our military actions.'
Jaishankar said all members would agree that India's approach should be guided by its national beliefs and values, national interest and by its national strategy.
"India has been deeply concerned over the rapidly deteriorating situation in Ukraine and the ensuing humanitarian crisis," India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador T S Tirumurti said.
Swiss foreign minister Ignazio Cassis said Russia would be asked to join the peace plan discussions at some point in time but to bring Russia on the table would require mediation by some countries.
'He may respect others, but he is unlikely to admire them'
Following rising tension between Russia and Ukraine, the sports fraternity has become proactive and many events in Russia have been cancelled, including the Russian Grand Prix.
India for the first time on Wednesday voted against Russia during a "procedural vote" at the United Nations Security Council on Ukraine, as the 15-member powerful UN body invited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to address a meeting through a video tele-conference.
The government has received requests for facilitation of early discharge of some Indian nationals purportedly recruited into the Russian armed forces in unclear circumstances, he said.
'While the President has been critical of India, he has gone out of his way to compliment PM Modi. They have an incredible relationship.'
Ukraine's First Deputy Foreign Minister Emine Dzhaparova will pay a four-day visit to India from Sunday, the first official visit from the East European country since the Russian invasion began last year.
The 193-member UN General Assembly adopted the draft resolution 'Humanitarian consequences of the aggression against Ukraine' by Ukraine and its western allies, with 140 nations voting in favour, five against and 38 abstentions. India abstained on the resolution.
Trump has a major decision to take in coming days -- specifically, how to rescue Israel from the attritional war that lies ahead, points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Today, I wish to announce that I have decided to proceed with opening an investigation into the situation in Ukraine, as rapidly as possible... I have reviewed the Office's conclusions arising from the preliminary examination of the situation in Ukraine, and have confirmed that there is a reasonable basis to proceed with opening an investigation,' the ICC statement read.
China has expressed its support for Russia's initiative to revive the Russia-India-China (RIC) troika, emphasizing its importance for regional and global security and stability.
The country's imports from Russia almost doubled to $25.69 billion during the April-August period this fiscal due to increasing inbound shipments of crude oil and fertiliser, according to the commerce ministry data. With this, Russia has become India's second-largest import source during the first five months of this fiscal. The imports were $13.77 billion during April-August 2022.
'As long as we have such partners, Russia cannot be isolated.'
Emphasising the importance of sustaining food and energy security, the G20 leaders called for the "cessation of military destruction or other attacks on relevant infrastructure".
Russia on Tuesday agreed to India's demand to ensure early release and return to home of the Indian nationals working in the Russian military as support staff after Prime Minister Narendra Modi 'very strongly' raised the issue with President Vladimir Putin.
The ongoing Hamas-Israel conflict has disrupted India's efforts to gain from a recent fall in crude oil prices. Since Hamas' invasion of southern Israel on October 7, petroleum has become costlier by around $5 per barrel, threatening to stoke prices and impact growth. Brent crude was trading at $89.8 per barrel on October 9 (9.15 pm IST), up over 4 per cent, thwarting India's anticipation of a period of declining oil prices - after the leading global petroleum benchmark declined by around 11 per cent last week.
The biggest question looming over the summit is whether there will be a joint leaders' declaration in view of the sharp differences between the West and the Russia-China combine on the text to describe the Ukraine conflict in the document.
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal ahead of his first state visit to the United States, Modi also talked about the Ukraine conflict, saying some people say that India is neutral but it is on the side of peace.
"Prime Minister Modi has a powerful, influential voice on the world stage. We know the Russian leadership respects India's voice and position on the world stage. I think Prime Minister Modi's intervention is very, very welcome. And we really hope that Vladimir Putin listens to those voices who are calling for peace and for de-escalation. So we very much welcome Prime Minister Modi's intervention," Cleverly told PTI in an interview.
The move points to a potential escalation of fighting in Ukraine, The Wall Street Journal said citing experts.
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday received a standing ovation after he addressed the European Parliament as the Russian military operation entered its sixth day.
The Indian Army's broader reorganisation is inevitable as India's military doctrine adapts to the demands of the modern battlefield.
