Hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss the evolving situation in Ukraine, Moscow sent its ambassador-designate to New Delhi. Denis Alipov, a leading India-specialist, belongs to a family of diplomats.
During the phone call on Thursday, India sought assistance from Russia to evacuate its nationals trapped in Ukraine. Sources said India would send flights to evacuate its nationals from capital Kyiv and other cities. Indian citizens are expected to be driven from Ukraine to neighbouring countries like Hungary and Poland and later airlifted to India. In such a situation, there will be a greater requirement of closer consultation between Russia and India. Mr. Alipov's arrival is expected to help in such critical tasks. Around 18,000 Indians are present in Ukraine.
His arrival coincides with heavy military action by Russian forces against Ukrainian targets. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has announced that Kyiv has been invaded by Russian forces. Ukraine has informed that the Russian military has established road checkpoints on the Kyiv-Sumy highway.
According to Sumy Oblast Governor Serhiy Zhyvytskiy, many northern Ukrainian cities have been encircled by Russian forces. Sumy, which has a large number of Indian students and professionals, has witnessed widespread fighting between Russian and Ukrainian soldiers over the past 24-hours. Reliable reports suggest that there has been fierce fighting in several other locations, including in Kherson near Crimea.
Back-channel talks
Mr. Alipov’s arrival has created the prospects for some form of back-channel talks. A diplomatic source said Ukraine had been eager for dialogue for a long time and that it was Russia which had not displayed any interest in discussing a solution. He, however, indicated that as of now, diplomats on all sides were “hostage to the military situation”.
Mr. Alipov was earlier posted in India and was known to be a confidante of Alexander Kadakin, the late Russian Ambassador who was popular among the diplomatic community in the Indian capital for several decades. Mr. Alipov is an alumnus of the Jawaharlal Nehru University.
