I think that in this case, your Prime Minister can address Mr Putin. He can address our President. Many times in history, India played a peacekeeping role. We're asking for your strong voice to stop this war: Dr Igor Polikha, Ambassador of Ukraine to India#RussiaUkraineConflict pic.twitter.com/sQxQ8XWgu9

— ANI (@ANI) February 24, 2022

Ukraine’s envoy to India on Thursday urged the Ministry of External Affairs to activate high-level dialogue involving Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the leaders of Ukraine and Russia.

The request came minutes after Russian President Vladimir Putin summoned a “special military operation” targeting Donbas in Ukraine. The order was quickly followed by multiple large explosions in various cities of Ukraine, which at present hosts approximately 18,000 Indian citizens.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) of Ukraine said Russian forces had begun attacking the country from multiple directions.

Ukraine crisis live updates | President Putin says Russia will conduct a military operation in eastern Ukraine

“Our partners should immediately enact a package of new sanctions. We also call on friendly capitals to continue strengthening Ukraine’s defense capabilities by providing weapons and military equipment,” said a statement from the MOFA, describing Ukrainian efforts as a “joint response” of the world. Shortly after President Putin announced a “special military operation” against Ukraine, the capital city Kiev reported loud blasts targeting certain facilities on the outskirts of the city.

Videos showed the explosions torching up the city. Indian students residing there said they could hear multiple blasts taking place in the city, which holds a substantial Indian population as well as Indian restaurants and businesses.

Indians stranded

Indian students outside Indian Embassy in Kyiv, Ukraine requesting officials to make at least a sitting arrangement inside the embassy as they had been standing outside since morning in minus two degrees freezing cold temperatures, but they are asked to make their arrangements to find hotels themselves, which was an impossibility in the war and Ukraine is helpless in this situation.

“We are still in Kiev and were woken up by a loud blast 15 minutes back from the Boryspil airport side,” said Baroon Varma, an Indian student in the city, through a message on the social media.

Mr. Anandhu, who hails from Kerala, said many Indians were in Kharkiv and Odesa, which have been bombed by Russian forces.

Sources here said that the officials were “closely monitoring” the Ukrainian crisis.

“Focus is on safety and security of Indians, particularly students. A control room is being expanded and made operational 24/7 basis,” said an official.

A horrific picture is released by a netizen appealing to stop the war as “war is not a solution, it creates problems and common people suffer more.” Are they going to stop?  By evening, one will know whether World War III has been triggered if NATO reacts to Russia’s attack.  It appears as if Putin was just testing the waters, and today was a test of NATO and the West, who appeared to be whispering dragons at best.  At the present time, India is completely silent on this issue.