April 12, 2022
NEW DELHI – The virtual meeting between US President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in which the former hailed India’s humanitarian approach towards the people of Ukraine and mentioned that both the nations are going to continue close consultation to manage destabilising effects of this Russian war seems to have paved way for India becoming one of the world leaders.
The meeting ahead of the 2+2 dialogue between the two countries in which Biden said the US and India share a strong and growing “major defence partnership”, has given a clear signal to the world that India under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is no longer going to play the second fiddle and has its own influence.
When the war began, it was Ukraine, that was looking toward India to bail it out by persuading Russia to stop the war, but now the world’s super power is banking on India while recognizing its ability and potential.
“The United States and India are going to continue our close consultation on how to manage the destabilizing effects of this Russian war,” Biden said and added, “We take the same concerns about the global challenges we face for COVID-19, advancing health security and tracking the climate crisis and we share a strong and growing major defence partnership.”
The US President was all praise for India as he said, “I want to welcome India’s humanitarian support for the people of Ukraine, who are suffering a horrific assault, including a tragic shelling in a train station last week that killed dozens of innocent children and women and civilians attempting to flee the violence.”
On his part, while giving a clear indication that India was bound to play a key role in resolving conflicts, Prime Minister Narendra Modi aptly reiterated that India was hopeful of the “ongoing talks between Russia and Ukraine will pave the way for peace”.
“When I came to Washington in September last year, you said that India-US partnership can contribute to the solution of many global problems. I completely agree with you. As the world’s two largest and oldest democracies, we are natural partners,” he added.
Modi also added, “We have also placed importance on the safety of the civilian population in Ukraine and the uninterrupted supply of humanitarian aid to them… Recently, the news of killings of innocent civilians in Bucha city was very worrying. We immediately condemned it and demanded a fair investigation,” PM Modi said during a virtual meeting with US President Joe Biden.