Seafarers' security, grain exports: Jaishankar reveals India's three-point discussion on war with Russia, Ukraine and Europe

External affairs minister S Jaishankar, who attended the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting on Friday and Saturday in Atlanta, US, said India had discussed three aspects of the Ukraine conflict with Russia, Kyiv and European countries.

EAM S Jaishankar during the G20 foreign ministers' meeting, in Atlanta, Georgia, US. (@DrSJaishankar/X)Jaishankar, speaking to news agency ANI, said the discussions covered protecting civilian shipping and seafarers from attacks, restoring grain exports from Russia and Ukraine, and the third aspect was related to energy, which he said was the “most complicated”.

"Non-attack on energy is probably the most complicated piece because it means different things to the different players. There is energy infrastructure itself. To some, it would mean a refinery; to some, it would mean grids.

There would be issues relating to ships carrying fuel,” he added. He said India has been calling on the parties to address these issues. He added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had discussed the conflict with Russian President Vladimir Putin during his visit to India in September for the 18th BRICS Summit.

“I had gone earlier to Moscow, and even today I discussed it with Mr Lavrov (Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov), and then in between I had gone to Kyiv, and we are in touch with the Ukrainian side. We have also been coordinating this with the Americans because they have their own peace mediation initiative,” he said.

Jaishankar and Lavrov held talks on the sidelines of the G20 meeting in Atlanta on the Ukraine conflict, West Asia and broader international issues. Notably, India has continued to engage with Russia and Ukraine through high-level diplomatic meetings and has consistently maintained that dialogue and diplomacy are essential to resolving international conflicts.

At the G20 meeting, Jaishankar also called for diplomatic engagement rather than military action, saying that military solutions alone could not resolve complex global challenges. “Emphasised that in the face of global challenges, military solutions will not work and diplomacy must be given a chance,” Jaishankar said in a post on X, outlining points he made during the first plenary session hosted by US secretary of state Marco Rubio.

He said the Global South bears an unfair share of the impact of attacks on civilian shipping and seafarers, which threaten the affordability and availability of fuel, food and agricultural nutrients. India has lost 22 nationals, including 14 seafarers, in the West Asia war over the past eight months, the ministry of external affairs said earlier this week.

Jaishankar also met Polish deputy prime minister and foreign minister Radoslaw Sikorski and held discussions focused on the Ukraine conflict, India-EU ties and the G20. Follow the latest breaking news, major developments and agenda-setting stories from India and around the world with the newsdesk at Hindustan Times.

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