EU’s von der Leyen in India with Ukraine on agenda

After arriving in India on Sunday for trade, security, and climate discussions, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will urge India on its neutral stance on the Ukraine conflict.

New Delhi has traditionally balanced its relations with the West and Moscow, which supplies the majority of India’s armaments, and Russia’s invasion of its neighbour has underscored the complexity of the balancing act.

The administration of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has neither publicly condemned Russia or sponsored a UN Security Council resolution condemning Moscow’s “aggression.”

Von der Leyen’s itinerary began with visits to local climate change initiatives, where she praised India for its “ambitious” renewable power target and said the Ukraine war had thrown energy security issues into the spotlight.

“For us Europeans it is a stark reminder that our dependency on Russian fossil fuels is not sustainable,” she said.

“Our transition to homegrown renewable energy is not only good for the environment but it also becomes a strategic investment in security.

She will meet with Modi on Monday, the latest in a series of recent diplomatic visits aimed at luring India away from Russia with assurances of security, defence, and energy cooperation.

When Modi hosted his British colleague Boris Johnson this week on a tour that concluded in the declaration of a new defence and security relationship, Ukraine was on the table.

Johnson’s visit followed telephone talks with US President Joe Biden on the invasion last week.