India’s Modi arrives in Kyiv for talks with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy

Indian prime minister expected to push settlement on ending Ukraine war, even if seen as being too close to Russia.

India’s Narendra Modi has arrived in Kyiv, where he will meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, marking the first time an Indian prime minister has visited the country since it gained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.

Modi is expected to discuss economic ties and cooperation in defence, science and technology, while also broaching the contentious subject of a settlement to end the war with Russia.

“No problem can be resolved on a battlefield,” Modi said ahead of his visit, adding that India supports “dialogue and diplomacy for restoration of peace and stability as soon as possible”.

It is unclear whether the Indian leader could be an effective dealmaker, seen by many in Ukraine as being too close to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Reporting from Kyiv, Al Jazeera’s Alex Gatopoulos said India would have to “perform this tightrope act” between the West and Russia.

“It is a Russian client state. The vast majority of its military equipment is Russian-made, so India cannot afford to alienate Russia either,” he said.

India is the world’s largest buyer of Russian arms, and has sought to capitalise on cheaper Russian oil as the United States and European countries seek to limit the Russian energy sector’s access to the global marketplace via sanctions.

Modi’s meeting with Zelenskyy comes a month and a half after he was in Moscow for talks with Putin, a visit that coincided with Russian missile strikes on Ukraine that hit a children’s hospital, which the Indian leader implicitly criticised during the bilateral summit.

Modi and Putin agreed to increase bilateral trade to $100bn by 2030, increasing