India irked over a newspaper article by German, French, British envoys

New Delhi: A newspaper article written by the ambassadors of Germany, France and the United Kingdom in India irked New Delhi as it criticised Russia for not being serious about ending the war in Ukraine, just ahead of President Vladimir Putin’s visit for the annual summit with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

A source in New Delhi on Tuesday termed the article written by the German, French and British envoys, particularly ahead of the India-Russia summit, as an “unusual and unacceptable diplomatic practice”.

Putin is arriving in New Delhi on Thursday and will hold the 23rd India-Russia summit with Modi on Friday.

The article by Philipp Ackermann, Thierry Mathou and Lindy Cameron – the envoys of Berlin, Paris and London to New Delhi – appeared in a newspaper on Monday.

The ambassadors of the UK and the two European Union (EU) member nations in India accused Russia of escalating the war in Ukraine even while peace talks were underway. They claimed that some of Russia’s largest air attacks on Ukraine since the beginning of the war had, in fact, taken place after the peace talks had started.

They questioned the seriousness of Russia in ending the war against Ukraine. They also accused Russia of contributing to global instability and making incursions into the airspace of India.

The source in New Delhi stated that the government of India had taken note of the “very unusual diplomatic practice” by the envoys of the three nations.

India has been drawing flak from the United States and the countries in Europe for continuing its trade, energy and defence ties with Russia even after the former Soviet Union nation had launched its “special military operations” in Ukraine, allegedly defying or circumventing the sanctions imposed by the West.

The source in New Delhi on Tuesday pointed out that India’s ties with Russia had been one of the most stable relations and contributed to global peace and stability, too.