Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba Announces His Maiden Visit To India

Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on Monday announced his maiden visit to India this week. Wishing the country on the occasion of Holi, Kuleba calls the festival the ‘most beautiful and colorful spring holiday’.

Kuleba’s visit comes at the invitation of his Indian counterpart, S Jaishankar, after a telephone called between the leaders of the two nations at the beginning of the year, said one of the officials.

Sharing the update on the microblogging site, X he said, “Today, India celebrates Holi, the most beautiful and colorful spring holiday. I wish everyone a happy Holi! Standing here in Kyiv, in front of Mahatma Gandhi’s monument, I am also pleased to announce that this week I will pay my first ever visit to India.”

In a two-minute video message, Kuleba said Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke to Prime Minister Narendra Modi with an aim to strenghten the relations between ‘two big democracies’.

Comparing the ideals of freedom and independence in India which are driven by Mahatma Gandhi, the foreign minister said, “This is exactly what Ukrainians are fighting for today– freedom and independence. When Mahatma began his struggle, there were very few optimists who believed him, but he persisted and achieved his goals.”

Calling Gandhi an inspiration for whole world, he said that supporting Ukraine today means supporting freedom and independence and supporting the legacy of the great Mahatma Gandhi. He concluded with a firm belief that the two countries can lay a ‘solid’ foundation for the future for mutual benefits.

Apart from talks with Indian officials, Kuleba is also set to “review the India-Ukraine inter-governmental commission”, one of the officials said, referring to a panel charged with keeping up the two nations’ economic, cultural and technological ties.

Ukraine has also pitched for New Delhi to help rebuild its war-ravaged economy, inviting investment from Indian companies at a January business summit in India.

(with inputs from Reuters)