UK Prime Minister to Call on India to Influence Russia over War against Ukraine

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will meet with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi to urge India to hold Russia accountable for its invasion of Ukraine and use its influence to help end the war.

As FT reports, Rishi Sunak, UK's first prime minister of Indian descent, is travelling to New Delhi to attend the annual G20 summit. This is his first trip to the country since taking office.

Sunak and Modi, India's prime minister, are expected to hold bilateral talks on the sidelines of the G20 and discuss progress on a trade deal that both countries are trying to conclude.

On the eve of the trip, Downing Street said Sunak would also raise the issue of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and encourage Modi to take a more active diplomatic approach.

A spokesperson for the UK prime minister said Sunak will use every opportunity during the trip to demonstrate the UK's support for Kyiv and "help further strengthen global support."

The spokesperson added that India, as the largest democracy in the world, should play a "vital role to play as the world’s largest democracy in calling out Russia’s assault on human rights and indeed democracy itself."

"We will use meetings with Modi or elsewhere to encourage them to use that influence to bring an end to the brutal invasion," the spokesperson said.

Despite Sunak's planned persuasion, it is believed that the Indian government is unlikely to take a more decisive stance against Russia regarding the war in Ukraine.

India has remained neutral throughout the conflict, but Modi has spoken about its impact on food and commodity prices and its implications for his country and other emerging economies.

Downing Street stressed that Russian President Vladimir Putin has decided not to attend the G20 summit for the second year in a row and that Sunak would not hesitate to criticise his replacement, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, "in person" over the weekend.

The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had a telephone conversation with UK prime minister Rishi Sunak on Thursday, 7 September.

During the conversation, Sunak assured Zelenskyy that the UK would "stimulate progress" with the G20 countries in overcoming the Black Sea grain blockade by Russia.

The EU plans to take advantage of the absence of China and Russia from the G20 summit and establish contacts with the leaders of the Global South.