NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi met President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv. Upon arrival at Maryinskyi Palace, Prime Minister was received by President Zelenskyy. 

The two leaders discussed the whole gamut of bilateral ties and exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest.

The two leaders witnessed signing of four agreements. These include (i) Agreement on Cooperation in the field of Agriculture and Food Industry; (ii) MoU on Cooperation in the field of Medical Products Regulation; (iii) MoU on Indian Humanitarian Grant Assistance for Implementation of High Impact Community Development Projects; and (iv) Programme for Cultural Cooperation for 2024-2028.

Both leaders expressed mutual interest in working towards elevating bilateral relations from a comprehensive partnership to a strategic partnership in the future.

They reaffirmed their commitment to further developing bilateral ties for the benefit of the peoples of both countries based on mutual trust, respect, and openness.

The leaders reviewed the steady and positive trajectory of bilateral ties that have strengthened significantly over the last three decades, and appreciated the role played by regular engagements between India and Ukraine at various levels, including their meetings in Apulia in June 2024 and in Hiroshima in May 2023 on the margins of the G7 Summits, the visit of the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine to New Delhi in March 2024, multiple interactions and telephone conversations between the External Affairs Minister of India and the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine; between the National Security Advisor of India and the Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, and the 9th round of Foreign Office Consultations held in Kyiv in July 2023, in enhancing mutual understanding, trust, and cooperation.

PM Modi and President Zelenskyy reiterated their readiness for further cooperation in upholding principles of international law, including the UN Charter, such as respect for territorial integrity and sovereignty of states. They agreed on the desirability of closer bilateral dialogue in this regard.

They discussed enhancement of cooperation in areas such as trade and commerce, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, defence, education, science & technology, and culture, apart from exploring a stronger partnership in domains such as digital public infrastructure, industry, manufacturing, green energy etc., including through greater involvement of business and industry from both nations.

Underlining the importance of defence cooperation between India and Ukraine, the Leaders agreed to continue to work towards facilitating a stronger relationship between the defence entities in both countries, including through joint collaborations and partnerships for manufacturing in India and cooperation in emerging areas. The sides agreed to hold the 2nd meeting of the Indian-Ukrainian Joint Working Group on Military-Technical Cooperation, established under the 2012 Defence Cooperation Agreement, in the near future in India.

Recognizing the key role played by cultural and people-to-people ties in the enduring friendship between India and Ukraine, the sides welcomed the conclusion of the bilateral Programme of Cultural Cooperation, and the decision to hold festivals of culture in India and Ukraine. The Leaders emphasized the importance of sustaining and further expanding people-to-people and cultural exchanges, including through scholarships offered under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation programme and the General Cultural Scholarship Scheme of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations.