PM Modi has his Eighth Meeting on the Ukraine Issue to Assess the Evacuation Process

Whilst India continues to evacuate its citizens caught in the crossfire involving Russia and Ukraine; reports came on Friday of an Indian student being hospitalized at Kyiv because of being shot at.

About the meeting

Prime Minister Narendra Modi convened a high-level conference on the Russia-Ukraine issue on Friday, during which he evaluated Operation Ganga’s progress. The discussion occurs in the aftermath of an Indian student being shot and hospitalized in Kyiv. A Union minister, General VK Singh, said on Friday that he had got reports that a student had been fired at and had been taken to the hospital.

Key government officials attended the conference, notably National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval, and included External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.

PM Modi has convened a series of high-level discussions since Russia and Ukraine launched an all-out war. Prime Minister Modi has met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Operation Ganga was begun under Prime Minister Modi’s guidance, with four Union ministers dispatched to four of Ukraine’s nearby nations to oversee every part of the evacuation.

3 more Indian Air Force C-17 aircraft arrived at Hindan airport late Wednesday night and early Friday morning, bringing 630 Indian nationals from Ukraine via Romanian and Hungarian airfields as part of Operation Ganga.

Over 9,000 Indians have been transported back into India from Ukraine as per the external affairs ministry.

Evacuation going on

While the evacuation is underway, India is taking a careful approach on the international stage, refraining from UNGA resolutions condemning Russia, despite its need for an urgent ceasefire. PM Modi agreed on new humanitarian assistance and disaster relief mechanism with the US, Australia, and Japan leadership during a virtual meeting of Quad leaders on Thursday.

Current situation

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, many Indians, especially students, have been trapped in the nation. Since Saturday, India has begun evacuating them, and over 900 individuals have been returned. Modi also spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, urging them to engage in discussion to help alleviate the issue.