India said differences between Russia and Ukraine can only be settled through dialogue

Emphasising that dialogue is the only way to settle differences and disputes, India abstained from voting on a draft resolution at the United Nations Security Council that condemned Russia’s annexation of four Ukrainian territories.

“Dialogue is the only answer to settling differences and disputes, however daunting that may appear at this moment. The path to peace requires keeping all channels of diplomacy open,” India’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Ruchira Kamboj said in her remarks at the UNSC on Friday.

Of the 15-nation Council, 10 nations voted for the resolution tabled by the US and Albania while China, India, Brazil and Gabon abstained. The resolution condemned Russia’s “organisation of illegal so-called referenda in regions within Ukraine’s internationally recognised borders.”

Making India’s stand clear, Permanent Representative Ruchira Kamoj said, “The path to peace requires us to keep all channels of diplomacy open. Escalation of rhetoric or tensions is in no one’s interest. It is important that pathways are found for a return to the negotiating table. Keeping in view the totality of the evolving situation, India has decided to abstain on this resolution.”

India’s Permanent Representative, Ruchira Kamboj said India is deeply disturbed by the recent turn of developments in Ukraine and New Delhi has always advocated that no solution can ever arrive at the cost of human lives.

Referring to Modi’s remark to Putin on the sidelines of the SCO Summit in Samarkand that “today's era is not an era of war,” Kamboj said India sincerely hopes for an early resumption of peace talks to bring about an immediate ceasefire and resolution of the conflict.

“India's position has been clear and consistent from the very beginning of this conflict. The global order is anchored on the principles of the UN Charter, international law and respect for sovereignty and the territorial integrity of all states. Escalation of rhetoric or tension is in no one's interest,” she said.

“It is important that pathways are found for a return to the negotiating table. Keeping in view the totality of the evolving situation, India decided to abstain on the resolution,” Ruchira Kamboj said.

On September 30, Russia formally annexed four regions of war-ravaged Ukraine-Kherson, Luhansk, Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia. With this move, Moscow has proclaimed Russian rule over 15 percent of Ukraine, a claim that has received firm rejection from the US and Europe. Earlier, Russia had annexed Crimea, also a Ukrainian part, in 2014