Putin thanks PM Modi, Trump for 'noble mission' to resolve Ukraine conflict

Russian President Vladimir Putin, in his first reaction to America's 30-day Ukraine ceasefire proposal, thanked Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for their "noble mission" to resolve the conflict.

In Short

• Vladimir Putin said he was 'grateful' to Trump, PM Modi for their 'noble mission'
• He praised world leaders, including China's Xi Jinping, for addressing Ukraine conflict
• He agreed to US's ceasefire proposal, but wants details sorted out

In his first comments on the US's 30-day Ukraine ceasefire proposal, Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed gratitude to Donald Trump and Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, among other world leaders, for their "noble mission" to resolve the conflict. Speaking at a joint press briefing with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Putin said he is "grateful" to all the leaders for their efforts towards the goal.

"As for Ukraine's readiness for a ceasefire, I will tell you how I view it, of course. But I would like to start by thanking the President of the United States, Mr Trump, for paying so much attention to the Ukraine settlement. We all have enough of our own domestic affairs to attend to," Putin told reporters.

"But many leaders of states, among them the President of the People's Republic of China, the Prime Minister of India, the Presidents of Brazil and the Republic of South Africa are addressing this issue and give it a lot of their time. We are grateful to all of them for that because this activity is aimed at achieving a noble mission - the mission of ending hostilities and loss of life," he further said.

During his meeting with Trump at the White House last month, PM Modi reiterated India's stand on the Russia-Ukraine war, saying the country is not "neutral" but on the "side of peace".

"India is not neutral. India is on the side of peace. This is not an era of war. A solution can't be found on the battlefield," PM Modi said, adding, "We support all peace initiatives and support Trump's initiative to end the war."

Since the war began in February 2022, PM Modi has spoken to both Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Putin several times, and reinforced India's position of peaceful resolution of the war through dialogue and diplomacy. The Indian Prime Minister met Putin in Moscow during the 22nd India-Russia bilateral in July last year, and also travelled to Ukraine in August. In both occasions, he said India was ready to play an active role in the path to peace and progress.

Meanwhile, Putin agreed to the US's truce proposal but has placed multiple clarifications and conditions, and asserted that any agreement must address the root causes of the conflict.

Ukraine has accepted the truce proposal following negotiation talks between Washington and Kyiv in Saudi Arabia. Putin said the decision was made due to being "under pressure from the US".

Following Putin's comments about setting terms of the ceasefire proposal, Trump said he hoped Russia would do the "right thing". However, the remarks irked Zelenskyy, who claimed Putin was intending to dismiss the proposal but was scared to tell that to Trump.

(With inputs from news agency ANI)