'Parliament witnessed healthy discussion on situation in Ukraine over last few days': PM Modi 'grateful' to all MPs

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said he is "grateful" to all MPs for a healthy discussion on the situation in Ukraine over the last few days.

Taking to Twitter, PM Modi wrote, "Over the last few days Parliament has witnessed a healthy discussion on the situation in Ukraine and India’s efforts to bring back our citizens through Operation Ganga. I am grateful to all MP colleagues who enriched this discussion with their views."

"The rich level of debate and the constructive points illustrate how there is bipartisanship when it comes to matters of foreign policy. Such bipartisanship augurs well for India at the world stage," he added.

The PM further apparently told the Opposition parties that it is their collective duty to care for the safety and well-being of the citizens and added that his government will not "leave no stone unturned to ensure our people do not face any troubles in adverse situations".

Earlier in the day, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar informed Lok Sabha that Ukraine has requested India for supply of more medicines and added that their delivery would begin soon.

Responding to a discussion on the situation in Ukraine, Jaishankar said the ground situation in that country calls for urgent humanitarian relief and pointed out that India has already provided 90 tonnes of relief material.

"I was glad to see that many members yesterday noted it and appreciated it. We did it even while we were in the middle of an evacuation," Jaishankar said.

"Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko called me a few days ago to request for supply of more medicines. The House will be glad to know that this is underway and delivery should start very soon," he said.

He said India will work with the international community and partner countries to mitigate the economic hardships that are resulting from this conflict.

"Obviously, our focus is to soften its impact on our own economy. But equally, there are partners who are going through very tough times. Coordinating on lowering energy prices is one collective initiative. In the case of a neighbour like Sri Lanka, we are even supplying fuel and food on credit," he said.

Noting that food security is another major concern, Jaishankar said India has been approached for the supply of wheat and sugar by many countries and it is responding positively.

"The House will be glad to know that whether it is basmati rice, non-basmati rice, sugar, wheat, our exports in the last quarter have gone up very, very substantially," he said.

"We have delivered for the world in terms of vaccines. We did it earlier for medicines. So, I would like to assure the House, through you, that we will also step forward where global demands for food grains and other materials are concerned, and we will do it in a manner that is helpful to the global economy, which will not take undue advantage of countries in distress," Jaishankar said.

(With PTI inputs)

Published on: Wednesday, April 06, 2022, 08:22 PM IST