WARSAW: On Thursday, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated that no conflict could be resolved on the battlefield as he spoke in Poland ahead of his historic visit to war-torn Ukraine. Modi is expected to use this landmark visit—the first by an Indian prime minister to Kyiv—to advocate for a “peaceful” resolution to the ongoing conflict that began with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The Indian government has refrained from explicitly condemning Russia’s actions, instead urging both sides to resolve their differences through dialogue. “India strongly believes that no problem can be resolved on a battlefield,” Modi said in Poland, a strong ally of neighboring Ukraine and a key transit point for leaders heading to Kyiv. He added that India supports “dialogue and diplomacy to restore peace and stability as soon as possible” and condemned “the loss of innocent lives in any conflict.”

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk welcomed Modi and his delegation at the government headquarters, with flags of both countries displayed outside the building and their anthems played by a military band. “History has taught our nations the importance of respecting rules, borders, and territorial integrity,” Tusk said while speaking to reporters alongside the Indian leader.

Tusk also mentioned that Modi “reaffirmed his willingness to commit personally to a peaceful, just, and swift end to the war.” Following their talks, Modi laid a wreath at a war memorial in central Warsaw and met with Polish President Andrzej Duda to discuss “enhancing commercial and cultural ties” between the two countries, as he mentioned on X (formerly Twitter). Modi is expected to depart from the Polish capital for Ukraine later on Thursday.

Modi has carefully balanced India’s traditionally strong ties with Russia while also seeking closer security partnerships with Western nations to counter regional rival China. “As a friend and partner, we hope for an early return to peace and stability in the region,” Modi stated in a message released on Wednesday before his departure for Poland. In Kyiv, Modi will hold discussions with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and “share perspectives on the peaceful resolution of the ongoing conflict in Ukraine,” the statement added.

On Wednesday, Modi paid tribute to an Indian maharaja who sheltered Polish children during World War II by laying flowers at a marble lotus-crowned monument in Warsaw dedicated to the maharaja. In a lesser-known story that connects the two nations, the maharaja hosted Polish children in what is now Gujarat—Modi’s home state, where he served as chief minister before starting his national political career.

The Indian leader announced a youth exchange program named after the maharaja, through which 20 Polish youths would be invited to India each year. “We are finally achieving the right level of political and diplomatic relations,” said Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Wladyslaw Teofil Bartoszewski regarding Modi’s visit, the first by an Indian prime minister in 45 years. He noted that Warsaw hopes to cooperate with India in “the agricultural sector, the IT sector, the security sector, and the new technology sector, especially green technology.”

On Wednesday, Modi addressed the Indian community in Warsaw in Hindi, promising a “dramatic expansion of the Indian economy in the coming years.” He is also expected to meet with Leszek Balcerowicz, a former Polish finance minister and free-market pioneer who guided Poland’s economic shift from communism to capitalism in the early 1990s. Additionally, according to the Indian Embassy, Modi will meet with captains of kabaddi teams—a contact sport combining elements of tag and rugby, rooted in Indian mythology and said to be over 5,000 years old.