NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Ukraine on Friday, officials said, weeks after Kyiv condemned him for hugging President Vladimir Putin during a visit to traditional ally Russia.

New Delhi’s foreign ministry said on Monday Modi will visit Poland on Thursday before travelling on to Ukraine the next day. Modi has trodden a delicate balance between maintaining India’s historically warm ties with Russia while courting closer security partnerships with Western nations as a bulwark against regional rival China.

His government has avoided explicit condemnations of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, instead urging both sides to resolve their differences through dialogue.

The “landmark” visit by Modi will discuss “the ongoing conflict in Ukraine”, Indian foreign ministry official Tanmaya Lal said.

“India has consistently advocated for diplomacy and dialogue to reach a negotiated settlement,” he said.