PM Modi’s Ukraine visit signals shift to ‘multi-alignment’ in multipolar world. What’s more on agenda?

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to visit Ukraine this Friday at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, according to Tanmaya Lal, a senior official at the Ministry of External Affairs, during a briefing in New Delhi.

This visit will allow both leaders to discuss collaboration in defence, economic and business relations, and science and technology.

Ukraine’s Presidential Office also confirmed Modi’s trip, highlighting that it will be the first time the two leaders meet to sign multiple cooperation agreements and address bilateral and multilateral cooperation issues. Modi's visit follows criticism from Zelenskyy of Modi’s two-day trip to Moscow in July, during which he met with President Putin on the day Russian missiles targeted Ukraine, resulting in numerous casualties.

Also Read: PM Modi bats for ‘dialogue and diplomacy’ in Poland

Speaking on PM Modi’s meeting with Zelenskyy, Diplomat and former Ambassador Rajiv Bhatia told LiveMint that the visit aims to strengthen bilateral cooperation and to advocate for peace in the region, which is currently suffering from a devastating war.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has expanded the non-alignment policy by introducing “multi-alignment,” a strategy of all-vector hedging in its geopolitics. 

“India fully understands that an armed conflict is going on, which is caused by one invasion. India stands by the UN charter and international laws. Moreover, India does not see merit in public condemnation of one country,” Bhatia added.

New Delhi has refrained from criticizing Russia over the war, significantly increased its imports of cheap Russian oil, and continues to advocate for resolving the conflict between Ukraine and Russia through dialogue and diplomacy. PM Modi while sitting alongside Russia’s Putin, said, “Peace is of utmost importance,” Modi said, adding, “When innocent children are murdered, one sees them die, the heart pains and that pain is unbearable.”

Also Read: Mint Primer: What did the PM’s Russia visit achieve?

Modi’s trip will mark the first visit by an Indian head of state to Ukraine since diplomatic relations were established over 30 years ago, following Ukraine's independence in 1991.

“We had good relations with Ukraine centred around trade, economic, education, and defence cooperation. There has already been a good relationship ever since we established diplomatic relations 30 years back when the Soviet Union collapsed and emerged as a new nation-state. The visit will expand around these lines— India would extend more humanitarian assistance, and Ukraine would take an interest in the Indian companies while focusing on post-war reconstruction recovery work,” the Senior diplomat added.

In the fiscal year 2021-22, India's goods trade with Ukraine was approximately $3.4 billion, and Ukraine ranks among India's top 50 trade partners.

Moreover, India is not neglecting Europe, which had previously been a lower priority or focused mainly on major powers. Under Modi's leadership, the government revived trade negotiations with the European Union (EU) and concluded a trade and investment agreement with the EFTA group.

Also Read: India’s trade and economic ties with the EU are set to strengthen

“Europe is important; the government has a foreign policy based on multi-alignment. A better relationship with Ukraine would also fetch better relations with Europe,” Bhatia concluded.

The EU is India's largest trading partner, accounting for €124 billion worth of goods trade in 2023, or 12.2% of total Indian trade, topping the USA (10.8%) and China (10.5%).

A peace process between Moscow and Kyiv remains unlikely at present, with the war ongoing and both sides far apart on cease-fire terms. Ukraine demands Russian withdrawal from its territory before negotiations can begin, while Moscow, which declared four Ukrainian regions as Russian territory in late 2022, insists it will not relinquish these areas.