Washington:Prime Minister Narendra Modi's remarks during his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Samarkand were not a change in India's position on the conflict in Ukraine, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said as he underlined that New Delhi has been urging for early cessation of hostilities between the two countries. Responding to a question on Russia's referendum in areas of Ukraine that it has occupied, Jaishankar told a group of Indian reporters here on Wednesday that India would reflect its views on the issue at the UN in New York.
"I think it is an issue that will be coming up for consideration, my understanding, is in the United Nations. So, I would urge you to wait and see what our ambassador there has to say", he said. About the meeting between Prime Minister Modi and Russian President Putin in Samarkand on September 16, Jaishankar said this was the first face-to-face meeting between the two leaders after the commencement of the Ukraine conflict. So, it was very natural when they have a face-to-face meeting that, you know, will begin the meeting with the press there, you make the press remarks, and we'll look at the video of that particular occasion, that's exactly what happened, he said.
Now, it's not as if we have not said that before. We have been expressing our concern about the conflict, the urgency for early cessation of hostilities, about the need for dialogue and diplomacy. So there has been a steady refrain. It was entirely natural that if the Prime Minister of India and the President of Russia were meeting at this juncture that these subjects would be addressed. And I think that's what the Prime Minister did, he said.