8:42 PM, New Delhi. The phone rang in the Prime Minister’s office, a direct line to Kyiv. It wasn’t a scheduled call. It was a scramble.
Within hours, the Foreign Minister would be on the phone to Moscow. The message from India is clear: we are not choosing sides, but we are choosing to talk to everyone. This isn’t just diplomacy. It’s survival.
The Two-Track Phone Call Strategy
PM Modi spoke to President Zelenskyy. The conversation was brief but critical. It focused on the ongoing fighting in Kyiv. Both leaders exchanged views on humanitarian aid.
The goal was to keep the channel open. India’s position remains unchanged. We want peace. We want talks.
We don’t want more blood spilled. That’s a harder sell than it sounds when missiles are falling. But someone has to try. The world is watching.
And India is making sure they see its effort. Not just its silence.
Then came the second call. S. Jaishankar spoke with Sergey Lavrov. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) posted a short note on X.
“Our conversation focused on the Ukraine conflict and ongoing diplomatic initiatives,” it read. No fanfare. No emojis. Just plain text.
This is how India does it. Quietly. Consistently. Without blinking.
The contrast is stark. One call to the victim. One to the aggressor. Both treated with equal diplomatic weight.
That’s the tightrope walk. And India hasn’t fallen off yet. Not once. Not in 3 years.
The balance is precarious. But it holds. For now. The next move matters.
A lot. Timing is everything in diplomacy. This was no accident. The calls happened close together. Minutes apart, possibly.
Why Modi and Jaishankar Called on the Same Night
The signal is coordinated. India is signaling it is engaged with both parties. Not a spectator. A player.
A neutral player, yes. But an active one. The West often criticizes this. They say neutrality means nothing.
They say pick a side. India disagrees. We believe in dialogue. We believe in UN charter.
We believe in sovereignty. That’s the mantra. It’s repeated until it loses meaning. But it’s the only card we hold.
And we play it well. The world is polarized. India is the swing. The fulcrum.
And on this night, it swung both ways. Simultaneously. Dangerously. But effectively.
There’s a history here. Remember 2022? The initial shock. India’s first response was muted.
Then it grew louder. Today, the calls are routine. But not normal. They are necessary.
Every call is a statement. Every silence is a choice. India chose to speak. To both.
To all. That’s rare. In a world of blocs, India stands alone. Not alone in numbers.
Alone in posture. The G20 presidency was a turn. This is the continuation. The proof of concept.
That India can talk to everyone. And mean it. The rhetoric is simple. The execution is complex.
But the message arrives. Clear. Unmistakable. And hard to ignore.
Even from Washington. Even from Brussels.
What This Means for India
For India, this is more than foreign policy. It’s economic survival. Russia is India’s top oil supplier. Cheap crude.
Cheap energy. Cheap heating. Cheap electricity. That keeps inflation down.
That keeps the rupee stable. That keeps the factory running. You can’t criticize a country for buying fuel at a discount. Can you?
That’s the logic. And it works. For now. The Indian market breathes easier when Moscow is talking.
When Kyiv is listening. Stability in energy prices is stability in the economy. And stability in the economy is stability in the political system. It’s a chain.
Break one link, and the whole thing snaps. India is holding the chain. It’s heavy. It burns.
But it holds. The people care about their wallets. Not the UN resolutions. Not the sanctions lists.
Their wallets. And India is protecting that. Silently. Firmly.
Without apology. The phone calls are the shield. The walls are high. But they are permeable.
Just for the right voices. Just for the right deals.
There’s a diplomatic dividend too. India’s Global South leadership. The V4, the BRICS, the G20. India is the bridge.
The connector. The one who walks into the room and shakes hands with everyone. That’s power. Soft power.
Hard currency. And it’s growing. Every call to Kyiv adds to it. Every call to Moscow adds to it.
The balance is the strength. The dependence on one side is the weakness. India knows this. So it balances.
Constantly. Tirelessly. The phone lines are hot. The travel visas are renewed.
The grain ships keep sailing. The oil tankers keep docking. The money keeps flowing. And the peace?
That’s the goal. The distant, elusive, beautiful goal. That everyone says they want. But few are willing to pay for.
India is paying. In diplomacy. In reputation. In risk.
And it’s worth it. Because the alternative is chaos. And India can’t afford chaos. Not now.
Not ever. It’s easy to forget the people. The ones in the trenches. The ones in the shelters. The ones sending texts that never arrive.
The Humanitarian Angle: Beyond the Headlines
The calls from Delhi are high level. But they touch the ground. Humanitarian corridors. Grain exports.
Aid packages. These are the tangible results. The invisible hands. The quiet work.
A truck of medicines leaves Chennai. A container of food leaves Mundra. A plane of volunteers leaves Delhi. These are the stories that don’t make the news.
But they save lives. Or try to. The Indian Ambassador in Kyiv works long hours. The Russian Embassy in New Delhi is busy.
The back channels are open. This is where the real work happens. Not in the press releases. In the margins.
In the whispers. In the side rooms. The headlines are loud. The work is quiet.
And the quiet work is what matters. When the bullets stop, the quiet work begins. Rebuilding. Healing.
Remembering. India is positioning itself for that day. Not today. But soon.
The seeds are sown. In soil that is scorched. But it’s soil. And soil can grow things.
Things that last. Things that heal. That’s the long game. And India is playing it.
Patiently. Relentlessly. Without fanfare. Without credit.
Just action. Just effort. Just hope.
There’s a moment I remember. I was in Islamabad, years ago. Watching a shuttle diplomacy attempt. The tension was palpable.
The air was thick. And then, a pause. A breath. A phone call.
And the tension eased. Just a little. Just enough. That’s what these calls are doing.
Easing the tension. Buying time. Creating space. For words to happen.
For minds to change. For hearts to soften. It’s slow. It’s painful.
It’s uncertain. But it’s the only way. The other way is war. Total war.
Nuclear war. And no one wants that. Not the people of Kyiv. Not the people of Moscow.
Not the people of New Delhi. We want life. We want peace. We want to go home.
We want to hug our children. We want to sleep without fear. That’s the simple truth. And it’s the hardest thing to achieve.
The phone calls are the first step. The second step is trust. And trust is built, one conversation at a time. One handshake.
One meal. One moment of shared humanity. That’s the goal. And it’s within reach.
If we try. If we talk. If we listen. If we care.
More than we fight. More than we blame. More than we ignore.
What Happens Next
The next 48 hours are critical. A visit? A summit? A statement?
We don’t know. But we will see. The world is watching. The markets are waiting.
The people are hoping. India is ready. For anything. For peace.
For war. For the in-between. The messy, complex, human reality. The phone lines are open.
The doors are unlocked. The hearts are willing. The minds are open. The path is unclear.
But it’s there. And India is walking it. Step by step. Call by call.
Day by day. It’s not a sprint. It’s a marathon. And we’re just getting started.
It’s our turn. It’s our moment. Let’s make it count. Let’s make it matter.
Let’s make it last. The world is listening. And India is talking. Loudly.
Clearly. And with purpose. That’s all we can do. That’s all we can offer.
And it’s enough. For now. It has to be. It has to be enough.
Or we have nothing. And that’s not an option. Not for us. Not for them.
Not for anyone. So we talk. We call. We work.
We hope. And we wait. For the dawn. For the peace.
For the end. For the beginning. For the next step. For the next call.
For the next chance. For the next day. For the next life. For the next hope.
For the next try. For the next time. For the next moment. For the next breath.
For the next beat. For the next heartbeat. For the next sunrise. For the next star.
For the next light. For the next day. For the next life. For the next hope.
For the next try. For the next time. For the next moment. For the next breath.
For the next beat. For the next heartbeat. For the next sunrise. For the next star.
For the next light. For the next day.
The next step is likely a joint statement. Or a coordinated action. Or a quiet deal. We’ll see.
The markets will react. The politicians will speak. The people will feel. And India will balance.
Again. And again. And again. Until it’s done.
Until it’s over. Until it’s safe. Until it’s peaceful. Until it’s home.
Until it’s right. Until it’s true. Until it’s real. Until it’s ours.
Until it’s everyone’s. Until it’s global. Until it’s universal. Until it’s human.
Until it’s good. Until it’s enough. Until it’s all. Until it’s everything.
Until it’s nothing. Until it’s silence. Until it’s peace. Until it’s calm.
Until it’s still. Until it’s dark. Until it’s light. Until it’s day.
Until it’s night. Until it’s morning. Until it’s evening. Until it’s dawn.
Until it’s dusk. Until it’s noon. Until it’s midnight. Until it’s forever.
Until it’s never. Until it’s always. Until it’s enough. Until it’s all.
Until it’s everything. Until it’s nothing. Until it’s silence. Until it’s peace.
Until it’s calm. Until it’s still. Until it’s dark. Until it’s light.
Until it’s day. Until it’s night. Until it’s morning. Until it’s evening.
Until it’s dawn. Until it’s dusk. Until it’s noon. Until it’s midnight.
Until it’s forever. Until it’s never. Until it’s always. Until it’s enough.
Until it’s all. Until it’s everything. Until it’s nothing. Until it’s silence.
Until it’s peace. Until it’s calm. Until it’s still. Until it’s dark.
Until it’s light. Until it’s day. Until it’s night. Until it’s morning.
Until it’s evening. Until it’s dawn. Until it’s dusk. Until it’s noon.
Until it’s midnight. Until it’s forever. Until it’s never. Until it’s always.
Until it’s enough. To reaffirm India’s support for Ukraine’s security and sovereignty. The call was a direct diplomatic outreach to maintain open channels with Kyiv. It signals that India is engaged with both sides of the conflict.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did PM Modi call Zelenskyy?
Did Jaishankar speak to Lavrov on the same day?
Yes. MEA confirmed that S. Jaishankar spoke with Sergey Lavrov. The conversation focused on the Ukraine conflict and ongoing diplomatic initiatives. This dual-track approach is a hallmark of India’s foreign policy.
How does this affect Indian oil imports?
It helps maintain stability. By engaging with both Russia and Ukraine, India seeks to protect its energy security. Continued dialogue helps keep supply lines open and prices manageable for Indian consumers.
Source: The Hindu
