Amid rising tension between Russia and the West over Ukraine, Minister of State for External Affairs Meenakshi Lekhi today said India believes in rule-based order and all stakeholders must communicate with each other.
"India believes in rule-based order. We pray for harmony and peace all around. We seek all the stakeholders must communicate with each other," she told news agency PTI.
On the evacuation of Indian citizens from Ukraine, Ms Lekhi said the government is doing its best as it has done in the past, "be it the COVID-19 situation, emergency in Libya or other exigencies".
"India stands by its people. We urge the citizens to remain in touch with the embassy," she asserted.
Amid escalating tension between Moscow and the West after Russian President Vladimir Putin recognised two breakaway Ukrainian regions as independent states, India at an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on Monday called for "restraint on all sides".
It had stressed that the immediate priority was "de-escalation of tensions", taking into account legitimate security interests of all countries and aimed towards securing long-term peace and stability in the region and beyond.
Indian students, who arrived in Delhi from Ukraine Tuesday night, said they were happy to be back in their home country.
Most of the students news agency PTI spoke to soon after their arrival in Delhi said they followed the advisory issued by the Indian embassy in Kyiv.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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