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 | |
 India |  Ukraine |
|---|---|
| Diplomatic mission | |
| Embassy of India, Kyiv | Embassy of Ukraine, New Delhi |
| Envoy | |
| Ambassador to Ukraine, Ravi Shankar | Ambassador to India, Oleksandr Polishchuk |
TheRepublic of India recognisedUkraine as a sovereign country in December 1991 following thedissolution of the Soviet Union and established diplomatic relations in January 1992. The Indian Embassy inKyiv was opened in May 1992 andUkraine opened its Mission inNew Delhi in February 1993. The Consulate General of India inOdesa functioned from 1962 until its closure in March 1999.
More than 17bilateral agreements have been signed between India and Ukraine, including agreements on cooperation in science and technology, foreign office consultation, cooperation in space research, avoidance of double taxation, and the promotion and protection of investments. DuringAero India 2021, Ukraine signed four agreements worth₹530crore (equivalent to₹595 crore or US$70 million in 2023) with India which includes the sale of new weapons as well as the maintenance and upgrades of existing ones in service with the Indian armed forces.[1]
India-Ukraine trade relations and economic cooperation has developed on the basis of the long-standing friendship between the two countries. In March, 1992 the Treaty on Friendship and Cooperation was signed between India and Ukraine, providing a major boost to India-Ukraine trade relations.
India-Ukraine trade relations have been developing at a very fast pace. There has been a threefold increase in India-Ukraine trade during 2003-2005, with the total volume exceeding $1 billion USD. Ukraine’s imports from India have doubled and stand at $3.214 million USD in 2006, while Ukraine’s exports to India have increased by 3.6 times and stands at $7.369 million USD in 2006. The total turnover in India-Ukraine trade during 2005-2006 has exceeded $3.1 billion USD (as of January 2014).[2] The main items being imported by Ukraine from India are drugs,pharmaceutical production equipment, ores and minerals,tobacco products,tea,coffee,spices,silk andjute. The main items imported by India from Ukraine arechemicals, equipment,machines andengines. Bilateral trade between the two countries has grown significantly in the last 25 years. In 2018–19, it was almost $2.8 Billion USD. India is Ukraine's largest export destination in the Asia-Pacific region and its fifth largest overall export destination.[3][non-primary source needed]
Both the Ukrainian and Indian governments take part in sessions of the Ukraine-India Inter-Governmental Commission which hosts the Joint Business Council Meeting of Ukraine-India.[citation needed] This has given a major boost to India Ukraine trade relations. Ukraine is not a new member in the Indian industry as its enterprises are actively involved and form the backbone of Indian power sector and heavy industries among others.[citation needed]
There are joint stock companies such as 'Ukrindustry' that has won contracts for conducting coke battery reconstruction at the plants of metallurgy inRourkela andBokaro. There are also Azovmash and Novokramatorskyi machine building plants that supply oxygen converter manufacturing equipment.[citation needed] India-Ukraine trade relations have also been successful in increasing co-operation between the two countries in the technology and scientific fields.
Under the Agreement signed between India and Ukraine in May 1992, the Joint S&T Committee meets annually to discuss implementation of projects, holding of exhibitions and co-operation in scientific research. The Committee last met inKyiv in October 2007 and approved 11 S&T projects for implementation. Days of Ukrainian Science and Technology were held in New Delhi in December 2004.National Space Agency of Ukraine andISRO have ongoing co-operation in the space sector. Ukraine has a very strong IT Sector. Many offshore call centres have been successful.Aptech Limited fromMumbai has signed an Agreement in May 2004 with International Institute of Personnel Management (the biggest IT training centre in Ukraine) to organise IT programmes for schools and institutions in Ukraine.Bio-technology is the latest sector where companies such asBiocon,Genome etc. are co-operating with each other. It also supplies turbines forthermal, hydroelectric andnuclear power plants.
In 2005, thenPresidentA. P. J. Abdul Kalam expressed interest in strengthening co-operation with Ukraine in the field of space research during a speech given to Indians in Ukraine.[citation needed] He and members of theIndian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) later visited the Ukrainian space agencyYuzhnoye, one of the largest rocket manufacturing units in the world.[4]
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India has had friendly relations with Ukraine even when the latter was a republic part of theSoviet Union. Annual Foreign Office consultations are held at Secretary level. The Deputy Foreign Minister in charge of the Asia region represents the Ukrainian side in these consultations. Ukraine has been positively co-operating with India at the international level also. Ukraine supports the resolution of the issue ofJammu & Kashmir on the basis of bilateralSimla agreement by India and Pakistan.[5] Ukraine also supports reforms of theUN structure.
The Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the United Nations, Volodymyr Yelchenko, condemned India fortesting nuclear weapons in a statement.[6]
After theRussian annexation of Crimea in 2014, India abstained from a resolution condemning it.[7] India also does not supportinternational sanctions against Russia.[8] In December 2014, Prime Minister of Crimea,Sergey Aksyonov, made an unofficial visit to India to sign a memorandum with a business group called the Indian-Crimean Partnership. India's Ministry of External Affairs spokesman said that he was not officially aware of the visit by Mr. Aksyonov. The spokesman also said that Mr. Aksyonov was not a member of Putin's delegation.[9] However, some experts have expressed scepticism regarding the explanation offered by India's Ministry of External Affairs spokesman. Ukraine president criticised India for allowingSergey Aksyonov to visit India.[8] U.S. State Department spokeswoman,Jen Psaki, also expressed concerns regarding the visit.[10]
In November 2020, India, along with 22 other countries, voted against a Ukraine-sponsored resolution in the United Nations condemning alleged human rights violations by Russia in Crimea.[11]
India’s position on theRusso-Ukrainian war, as stated in its parliamentary responses and at theUnited Nations, called for an immediate cessation of hostilities and a peaceful resolution through diplomacy and direct dialogue. India expressed concern over the humanitarian crisis and provided assistance to civilians, while maintaining a neutral stance emphasizing respect for international law, the UN Charter, and state sovereignty. During the February 25, 2022 Security Council meeting, Ambassador T.S. Tirumurti highlighted the importance of dialogue, regretted the abandonment of diplomacy, and explained that these principles guided India’s decision to abstain from the vote condemning Russia and demanding its withdrawal.[12][13][14]
Throughout the Russian invasion of Ukraine, India abstained from voting in support of several resolutions aimed at condemning Russia's actions in Ukraine, both at theUnited Nations General Assembly and at theUnited Nations Security Council.[15][16] India was one of three countries on the UN Security Council to abstain from voting on theresolution to condemn the 2022Russian invasion of Ukraine, which ultimately failed due to a veto frompermanent member Russia.[17] India has also abstained from voting in support of resolutions demanding probe intoRussia's human right violations in Ukraine and theresolution aimed at terminating Russia's membership toUnited Nations Human Rights Council.[18][19] Russia, in turn, has also praised India from abstaining on resolutions aimed at Russia and termed India's position as "balanced and independent".[20]
The Government of India had also refused to condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine and termed India-Russia friendship "unbreakable". Following the invasion of Ukraine, India doubled down on buying large amount of Russian oil at discounted price and continued placing order for Russian-made weapons.[21] This made Russia the 3rd largest oil supplier to India in 2022. In 2021, Russia was at the 17th spot, supplying only about 1 percent of India’s overall oil imports.[22] From April 2022 to January 2023, India's Russian import rose by 384%, mainly driven by increased import of Russian oil.[23] Ukrainian Foreign MinisterDmytro Kuleba criticized India for profiting from buying cheapRussian oil.[24] On 29 December 2022, following theRussian strikes against Ukrainian infrastructure, Kuleba tweeted, "There can be no ‘neutrality’ in the face of such mass war crimes. Pretending to be ‘neutral’ equals taking Russia’s side.".[25] The Indian government has provided a significant amount of non-violent and humanitarian aid to Ukraine including essential medicines, essential medical equipment and school buses, emphasising on itsde-hyphenated policy.[26]
In March 2024, Dmytro Kuleba said on a visit to India that the country should be concerned about Russia’s deepening ties with China. He declared that “the co-operation between India and Russia is largely based on the Soviet legacy. But this is not the legacy that will be kept for centuries; it is a legacy that is evaporating.” Kuleba emphasized that Ukraine is interested in restoring trade with India and that Indian companies are welcome to participate in the recovery of the country.[27]
In June 2024, Indian diplomatPavan Kapoor attended theUkraine peace summit in Switzerland. Kapoor did not sign theJoint Communiqué.[28]
In July 2024, Indian Prime MinisterNarendra Modi visited Moscow to meet Russian PresidentVladimir Putin. Ukrainian PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy criticized Narendra Modi's visit to Moscow as a "huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts".[29] The two embraced as Modi climbed out of his car; this act was criticized by Zelenskyy as it happened on the same day thatRussian missiles struck a children's hospital in Kyiv.[30]
In August 2024, Modi visited Ukraine, marking his first visit to Ukraine by any Indian Prime Minister.[31]
In August 2025, PM Modi invited Volodymyr Zelenskyy to visit India.[32]
In July 2025, India became Ukraine’s largest diesel supplier, providing 15.5% of total imports—up from just 1.9% in July 2024, according to NaftoRynok. Exports averaged 2,700 tonnes per day, with deliveries routed via Romania’s Danube ports and Turkey’s Opet terminal. The increased supply supported Ukraine’s fuel needs and analysts noted that some diesel may have been refined from Russian-origin crude, though official data remained unconfirmed. The fuel aided Kyiv even while the U.S. imposed punitive tariffs on India over its continued imports of Russian oil.[33][34][35]
The Ukraine Defense Ministry’s official Twitter account posted a caricature image mocking the Hindu deityMaa Kaali and called it a "Work of Art". Following subsequent backlash, Ukraine’s Deputy Foreign Minister Emine Dzheppar Dzhaparova tweeted "We regret @DefenceU (Ukraine Defense Ministry’s official Twitter account) depicting Hindu Goddess Kali in a distorted manner.[36]
Oleksandr Merezhko, a senior Ukrainian lawmaker and a top aide toVolodymyr Zelenskyy, while on a visit toWashington, had requested United States to impose sanctions onIndia andChina if they continue buying oil from Russia.[37][38][39]
On 2 September 2022,The Economic Times reported that India has strongly raised objection against the transfer of Pakistan's manufactured arms and ammunition to Ukraine throughRoyal Air Force's aircraft with the government of United Kingdom.[40]
A small but vibrant Indian community lives in Ukraine, composed mostly of business professionals and students. There are about 18,000 Indian students studying in Ukraine, mainly in the field of medicine. Indian business professionals work predominantly in the fields of pharmaceuticals, IT, engineering, medicine, and education. The ‘India Club’, founded by Indian expats in 2001, actively engages the Indian diaspora in Ukraine and organises several events - such as a Diwali festival, cricket tournaments, a Holi festival, Indian dance festival, screenings of Bollywood movies, etc.[3][41] An Indian student fromMadlauda wrote an autobiography on his life in Ukraine, the atrocities of theRussian invasion of Ukraine and resultingOperation Ganga in a book titledThe Life of Tolka.[42]
On March 4, 2022, India asked Ukraine and Russia to enforce a truce in the northeastern Ukrainian city of Sumy to allow hundreds of Indian students besieged there to be evacuated as the situation worsened.[43]
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