Ukrainian First Deputy Minister India visit: How do you perceive India and Indians? Do you consider Indian citizens and the nation as gullible? Well, I don’t know about you, but it seems that the Ukrainian leadership has a wrong notion about India. They have been trying hard to win over India’s trust, both by means of empty threats and by buttering up. The same confused and frustrated line of thinking was visible in the flip-flop statements of the Ukrainian First Deputy Minister during her India visit. Speaking on multiple platforms in India, she tried to both butter India as well as lecture India on how the Vishwaguru should act in order to be judged correctly in times to come.
Ukrainian First Deputy Minister visits India
Recently, the Ukrainian First Deputy Minister, Ms. Emine Dzhaparova, concluded her three-day India visit. Dzhaparova is the first high-ranking representative of Kyiv to speak with Indian officials following the start of the Russia-Ukraine war on February 24, 2022. This was her first official visit to India, during which she made all possible efforts to seek India’s help amid its ongoing conflict with Russia.
Terming the meeting as “fruitful”, Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Dzhaparova posted several tweets from her official Twitter handle. In these tweets, she updated about the various programmes she took part in during her three-day India vi
During Ukrainian First Deputy Minister India visit, Ms. Dzhaparova met with Shri Sanjay Verma, Secretary (West), MEA. The bilateral meeting touched on issues of mutual interest on the global stage. These included areas like economics, defence, humanitarian aid, and global challenges.
She briefed Mr. Verma on the current Ukraine situation. Both parties agreed to set a mutually agreeable date for the next round of foreign office consultation. This will take place in the future and be held in Kiev.
The First Deputy Minister of Ukraine invited Indian businesses to invest in Ukraine’s redevelopment. She suggested that Indian businesses can find opportunities in the rebuilding of Ukraine’s infrastructure. Secretary West, Mr. Sanjay Verma, highlighted that India has given Ukraine medications, medical equipment, and will give Ukraine school buses, among other things.
On the issue of Indian medical students, the Deputy First Minister announced that Ukraine will allow Indian medical students to take the Unified State Qualification Exam in India itself.
Additionally, Ms. Dzhaparova spoke with Ms. Meenakshi Lekhi, Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture. They held conversations on a wide range of bilateral and global issues of mutual interest.
I was glad to pass @M_Lekhi a letter from #Ukraine's President @ZelenskyyUa to 🇮🇳 Prime Minister@narendramodi. As our countries 🇮🇳&🇺🇦 have mutual interests & visions, intensified dialogue on the highest level will be fruitful for our people and security in the world. pic.twitter.com/U6NQe7K5KI
— Emine Dzheppar (@EmineDzheppar) April 11, 2023
Ms. Lekhi agreed with the Ukrainian request for further humanitarian aid, including medications and medical supplies. It was agreed that the next Inter-Governmental Commission between the two nations would take place in India on a mutually agreeable date.
Also Read : No Gain, Only Pain: Pakistan’s Arms Supply to Ukraine
Apart from that, Ms. Dzhaparova delivered a letter from President Zelenskyy written to Prime Minister Modi.
Desperation to seek India’s support and corner Russia
Since the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Ukraine has been exerting pressure and trying to sweet-talk India to get its support. In her India visit too, the Ukrainian First Deputy Minister tried to lecture India as well as speak highly of India to gain favour from India. Acknowledging the sovereign right of India to have relations with other countries, she lectured India to adopt a pragmatic approach and think about how history will judge India for being on the side of an aggressor nation, namely, Russia.
She preached that being with Russia is to be on the wrong side of history. Supporting Russia means it is to be in the evil visionary picture of the world.”
#WATCH |"We respect decision of sovereign country, India to build up relations with other countries…but there should be consideration of pragmatic approach.Being with Russia is on being the wrong side of history…":Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Emine Dzhaparova pic.twitter.com/sDI0RFCrMZ
— ANI (@ANI) April 11, 2023
Later, she extended a ‘generous and genius’ proposal, thinking that India would fall for such an intellectually lazy argument to court India. She stated that Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would be happy to address the G-20 summit in New Delhi, which is to be held in September this year.
Furthermore, the Ukrainian First Deputy Minister also visited the Manohar Parrikar Institute of Defence Studies and Analysis. She also delivered a talk at the Indian Council on World Affairs.
Speaking at the government-funded think tank Indian Council of World Affairs, Deputy Minister Dzhaparova also humbly demanded India to involve Ukrainian representatives in the G20 meetings.
India statement on Ukraine Deputy foreign minister visit:
-Ukraine will allow foreign medical students to take Unified State Qualification Exam in their country of domicile
-Ukraine proposed rebuilding infrastructure in the country could be an opportunity for Indian companies pic.twitter.com/MNKx1yt1gj— Sidhant Sibal (@sidhant) April 12, 2023
Ukraine Deputy FM handed over a letter from Prez Zelenskyy, addressed to Prime Minister Modi & requested for additional humanitarian supply, including medicines and medical equipment: India statement
In her tweet also, DFM also confirmed the letter:https://t.co/1QWT9YEIUE
— Sidhant Sibal (@sidhant) April 12, 2023
Several geopolitical experts have tried to present this as an interesting proposal. They have rationalised it by highlighting the fact that last time during the Bali summit, India voted in favour of allowing Zelensky to address the G20 leaders’ summit. Back during the G-20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, India voted in favour of the Ukrainian side despite the strong reservations of the Russian side, which voted against that proposal.
After that proposal, Zelenskyy addressed the G20 summit in Bali through videoconference. On that line, First Deputy Minister Dzhaparova argued that as a global leader and current Chair of the G20, India can play a greater role in bringing peace and thus should invite Ukrainian representatives to the G-20 meeting. She also hoped that Indian officials would visit Kyiv soon.
Also Read : Why both Ukraine and Russia never say a word against India?
Ms. Dzhaparova further argued that NSA Ajit Doval had travelled to Moscow three times since the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. So he could visit Kyiv for a more “balanced approach” on New Delhi’s part.
In addition, she cited Mahatma Gandhi’s teachings, claiming that Gandhiji had advocated defending rights free of violence.
On the issue of Ukraine-India bilateral ties, Ukrainian Deputy Minister remarked that India is witnessing visionary changes and it may take some time for it to build new relations with Ukraine. She added that the ties should be based on a “pragmatic and balanced approach”. However, she rationalised that now the ball is in India’s court to decide.
She said, “I think the suggestion that I brought here is to have a better and deeper relationship with India, and it needs reciprocity. We knocked the door but it is also up to the owner of the house to open the door.”
While lecturing India for having strong ties with Russia, the Ukrainian First Deputy Minister defended having strong ties with Pakistan. As per many credible reports, on the US’ request, Pakistan has been supplying military weapons to Ukraine amid the ongoing conflict with Russia, which has not gone down well in many sectors.
On Ukraine’s ties with Pakistan, she said, “The relationship with Pakistan is never directed against the relationship with India. I know there are some sensitivities about military contracts, but let me be very clear that we have had the contracts since the 1990s.”
Her endless ranting and pleasantries are not a lone example of confused policy of Ukraine towards India. Some sunny morning, comedian turned president Zelensky tried to take the moral high ground and lecture India on what more India should do to really have a balanced and neutral approach on the European conflict. In the initial phase of the Russia-Ukraine, Ukrainian Ambassador tried to sweet talk India, citing references from Mahabharta.
Later, its Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba stated that India is buying Ukrainian blood by purchasing Russian crude oil. He demanded that India should give more practical support to Ukraine and condemn Russia’s aggression.
Every barrel of Russian crude oil delivered to India has a good portion of Ukrainian blood in it: Ukraine Foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba
— Sidhant Sibal (@sidhant) August 17, 2022
Not just Ukraine, but its puppeteer, the US, and the Western nations should understand that now the New India works as per its national interests, which are similar to theirs, and is on the side of peace, not what the West or Russian bloc wants India to dictate. India’s move can neither be coerced nor changed by sweet talks, so they better focus their energies elsewhere or should rather pay heed to India’s backdoor negotiations for peace.
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