New Delhi: Russia and Ukraine have been at war since Vladimir Putin ordered a ‘special military operation’ on 24th February, 2022.
The attacks have ebbed and flowed over four-and-a-half years, but a long-lasting ceasefire agreement has remained elusive.
However, Poland’s Deputy Foreign Minister Wladyslaw Teofil Bartoszewski has praised India’s role in preventing the Russia-Ukraine war from escalating further. According to Bartoszewski, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is one of the few world leaders whose views are taken seriously by the Russian President.
In an interview with ANI, Bartoszewski said India’s decades-old relationship with Russia puts New Delhi in a unique position in efforts to push for peace.
He also referred to developments in late 2022, claiming that Modi had played a role in persuading Putin not to use tactical nuclear weapons in the war against Ukraine.
He also referred to developments in late 2022, claiming that PM Modi had played a role in persuading Russia against using tactical nuclear weapons during the war.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi is a very well-known world statesman who is very respected, and India has a long-standing relationship with the Russian Federation and, before that, with the Soviet Union as a non-aligned nation. President Putin actually pays attention to what Prime Minister Modi tells him,” the Polish leader said.
He went a step further to say that PM Modi is among a handful of leaders who can influence the Russian President at a time when communication with Moscow has become increasingly difficult.
“Prime Minister Modi is one of the few people who can actually exert some pressure and influence on President Putin, and that is clearly something India could do to help stop this conflict,” Bartoszewski said.
According to him, calls for restraint carry greater weight when they come from countries that Russia does not consider hostile.
Besides India, Bartoszewski mentioned China to be another voice that matters in Moscow.
“Everybody is against escalation, not only India with Prime Minister Modi but also China’s Xi Jinping. It’s important, especially when it comes from countries that are not seen as hostile to Russia. India’s role here is crucial,” he said.
Bartoszewski remarked that differences between Poland and India over the latter’s decision to continue importing discounted Russian crude oil have not affected their relation.
“I think we were critical about India buying Russian oil. We understood the economic reason for that because it was at a heavy discount, about 40 per cent less than the market price. We understood that, but it was fuelling the Russian war economy. So we had a different view on that,” he said.
#WATCH | Delhi: On the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Secretary of State of the Polish Minister of Foreign Affairs, Władysław Teofil Bartoszewski, says, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi is a very well-known world statesman, who is very respected, and India has a long-standing relationship… pic.twitter.com/R38wQurE9u
— ANI (@ANI) July 14, 2026
