NEW DELHI 

Bolstering ties with India is more important than ever before in the context of the Ukraine war, UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said Thursday.

Her comments came during an official visit to India that the UK has said is “part of a wider diplomatic push following Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine.”

“Strengthening relations with India is more important than it has ever been, precisely because we are living in a more insecure world…because we have (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s appalling invasion of Ukraine and violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Truss said at the first India-UK Strategic Futures Forum shortly after holding talks with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.

To a question about New Delhi’s push to procure Russian oil at discounted rates, she said: “I have outlined the UK’s approach to sanctions and the fact we are ending our dependence on Russian oil...India is a sovereign nation. I am not going to tell India what to do.”

Regional and global issues of mutual interest, including the Ukraine situation, were part of discussions between Jaishankar and Truss, the Indian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

“On Ukraine, India reiterated that the immediate cessation of violence and return to dialogue and diplomacy is the key to long-term peace in the region,” said the statement.

Raft of diplomacy

India’s middle-ground stance on the Ukraine war has led to a flurry of visits by dignitaries from the around the world, including Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who touched down in New Delhi on Thursday evening and will meet Jaishankar on Friday.

Another significant visit was Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s unannounced trip last week, the first by a senior Chinese official since Himalayan border clashes that erupted in May 2020 severely strained relations between the two Asian giants.

India is a historical ally of Russia but has been growing closer to Washington in recent years. Since Russia declared the war on Ukraine on Feb. 24, New Delhi has called for a peaceful solution to the crisis but refrained from openly criticizing Moscow.

Differences between the US and India on the Ukraine war are already out in the open.

President Joe Biden said last week that India, despite being a member of the Washington-led Quad group, is “somewhat shaky” in acting against Russia.

Daleep Singh, the US deputy national security adviser for international economics, was also in New Delhi on Thursday to meet Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Shringla.

“What we would not like to see is a rapid acceleration of India’s imports from Russia as it relates to energy or any other exports that are currently being prohibited by the US or by other aspects of the international sanctions regime,” Singh told reporters in the Indian capital, according to local daily Hindustan Times.

Earlier in the day, Geoffrey van Leeuwen, foreign affairs and defense adviser to the prime minister of the Netherlands, met with India’s National Security Adviser Ajit Doval in New Delhi.

“Discussed the situation in Ukraine, Afghanistan, other regional developments as well as topics from our extensive bilateral agenda. Next week the president of India will visit the Netherlands,” he wrote on Twitter.

Jens Ploetner, chief foreign policy adviser to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, also reached New Delhi for talks with Indian officials.​​​​​​​

Diplomatic importance

The beeline of dignitaries “clearly indicates India’s enhanced importance” amid Russia’s war on Ukraine, Rajiv Bhatia, a former Indian diplomat, told Anadolu Agency.

“Diplomatically, India is important. With war raging in Europe, which is a major international development, obviously governments need to consult with India,” he said.

“There are two sides in this conflict – Russia and Ukraine and Russia and NATO. Both are keen to communicate their views, both privately and publicly, to the government of India.”

He said Moscow’s “main concern would be to ensure India remains friendly and supportive … and does not yield to pressure from the West.”

“As far as the West is concerned, their objective is to explain things at greater depth to the Indian government and request India to shift its position and become more supportive and sympathetic,” Bhatia added.

New Delhi will listen closely to both sides and take a position keeping its national interests in mind, he said.

“India is going to essentially project that values are very important to us, international law and principles are very important … India will do what other countries do; take a position that aligns with its national interests,” said Bhatia, who is associated with the Mumbai-based think tank Gateway House.

“Whatever position India has taken so far, or may take in the future, will emanate from its adherence to the principle of strategic autonomy,” he concluded.