EAM pressures Russia for early return of Indian nationals caught in Ukraine war | Latest News India

India on Wednesday pressed Russia for the safe and early return of Indian nationals serving in the Russian military and caught up in the war in Ukraine, as External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov to review bilateral ties.

The meeting between the two foreign ministers, on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in the Kazakh capital of Astana, also helped pave the way for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Moscow on July 8-9.

Jaishankar, who is representing India at the SCO summit after Prime Minister Narendra Modi decided not to attend, said in a message on X that he had raised the issue of Indians serving in the Russian military. “We have expressed our grave concern over the Indian nationals who are currently in the war zone. We have insisted on their safe and speedy return,” he said, without directly referring to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

Last month, India said it expected Russia to respond to New Delhi’s demand for a “verified halt” to the recruitment of Indian nationals into the Russian military after four Indians were killed while serving on the front lines of the conflict with Ukraine.

On June 11, after the deaths of two Indians last month, India had demanded a “verified halt” to the recruitment of Indians by the Russian military. India had taken the unusual step of making the demand shortly after the external affairs minister attended the national day reception at the Russian embassy.

Around 25 Indians serving in the Russian military have so far contacted the authorities seeking help to be released. Of these, 10 have been released and repatriated to India. Reports have suggested that up to 200 Indians were recruited by the Russian military to serve as support staff, such as cooks and helpers, although the people cited above said the number could be around 100.

India has so far refrained from censuring Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and has only called on the two countries to end hostilities and return to the path of dialogue and diplomacy to find a solution to their differences.

Jaishankar said in his message on X that he and Lavrov had an in-depth conversation on bilateral partnership and contemporary issues. “We noted the progress in many areas since our last meeting in December 2023. We also discussed the global strategic landscape and exchanged assessments and views,” he said.

People familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity that the meeting allowed both sides to prepare for Modi’s upcoming visit to Russia, his first trip since 2019 and also his first since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin are expected to attend the annual India-Russia summit, which has not taken place in two years. The meeting is expected to reinvigorate bilateral ties and set the course for the years to come, particularly for cooperation in key areas such as energy, defence, space and civil nuclear power.

Soon after arriving in Astana on Tuesday, Jaishankar met Kazakh Foreign Minister Murat Nurtleu and discussed bilateral strategic partnership and India’s growing engagement in Central Asia. On Wednesday, Jaishankar is also scheduled to meet his counterparts from Belarus, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan as well as UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.