Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

PM Modi has influential voice on world stage, welcome his intervention: UK Foreign Secretary on his not era of war remark to Putin

“We really hope that Vladimir Putin listens to those voices who are calling for peace and for de-escalation.”

PM Modi has influential voice on world stage, welcome his intervention: UK Foreign Secretary on his not era of war remark to Putin

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has a powerful, influential voice on the world stage and the Russian leadership respects India’s position on the global arena, UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly has said, emphasising that London hopes President Vladimir Putin listens to those voices who are calling for peace amid the Ukraine conflict.

Cleverly was responding to a question on the Russian-Ukraine conflict and Modi telling Putin last week on the sidelines of the 22nd meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation in Uzbekistan’s Samarkand that “today’s era is not of war”.


“Prime Minister Modi has a powerful, influential voice on the world stage. We know the Russian leadership respects India’s voice and position on the world stage. I think Prime Minister Modi’s intervention is very, very welcome. And we really hope that Vladimir Putin listens to those voices who are calling for peace and for de-escalation. So we very much welcome Prime Minister Modi’s intervention,” Cleverly told PTI in an interview.

He also said that there has been a terrible loss of life in the Ukrainian conflict.

“Obviously, we have seen the terrible loss of life in the Ukrainian conflict, both loss of life of Ukrainians but also of young Russian men and women, which is terrible,” Cleverly, the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs of the United Kingdom, said here on Wednesday on the margins of the high-level UN General Assembly session.

He underlined that the challenges that pre-existed with regard to food security and people at risk of food insecurity and famine have been amplified by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“We’ve always been very, very clear that our sanctions do not target food exports, they do not target fertilizer exports, they do not target ammonia exports. But nevertheless, people in the world who are already hungry, their situation has been made worse by Putin’s invasion of Ukraine. And that’s why Prime Minister Modi’s intervention is important and very welcome,” he said.

Cleverly added that “obviously India is an incredibly important and influential country on the world stage. I think with so much turbulence going on in the world, our close partnership and working relationship with India is incredibly important.” As world leaders gather at the UN headquarters for the high-level week amid turbulent global times and humanitarian and geo-political crises, Cleverly said the UN is still relevant.

“The world is changing in many areas and changing very, very quickly. And it’s important that international institutions adapt and evolve to meet those changing challenges and circumstances. And multilateral fora like the UN will always be an important part of our relationship.” He added that bilateral relationships are also very, very crucial. Meeting counterparts collectively at UNGA provides a “fantastic opportunity” to have really key bilateral meetings.

Cleverly, in New York for the high-level UNGA session, met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on the UNGA margins late Wednesday evening.

Earlier in the day, Cleverly said he was looking forward to meeting his Indian counterpart. Jaishankar “knows us well. He’s worked with my predecessors. And I’m very, very much looking forward to discussing both global issues, regional issues and also our bilateral relationship.”

(PTI)

More For You

Nepal’s new leader pledges to act on Gen Z calls to end corruption

Officials greet newly-elected Prime Minister of Nepal's interim government Sushila Karki (R) as she arrives at the prime minister's office in Kathmandu on September 14, 2025. (Photo by PRABIN RANABHAT/AFP via Getty Images)

Nepal’s new leader pledges to act on Gen Z calls to end corruption

NEPAL’s new interim prime minister Sushila Karki on Sunday (14) pledged to act on protesters’ calls to end corruption and restore trust in government, as the country struggles with the aftermath of its worst political unrest in decades.

“We have to work according to the thinking of the Gen Z generation,” Karki said in her first address to the nation since taking office on Friday (12). “What this group is demanding is the end of corruption, good governance and economic equality. We will not stay here more than six months in any situation. We will complete our responsibilities and hand over to the next parliament and ministers.”

Keep ReadingShow less
UK secures £1.25bn US investment ahead of Trump’s visit

US president Donald Trump and UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer arrive at Trump International Golf Links on July 28, 2025 in Balmedie, Scotland. (Photo by Jane Barlow-WPA Pool/Getty Images)

UK secures £1.25bn US investment ahead of Trump’s visit

THE British government has announced over £1.25 billion ($1.69bn) in fresh investment from major US financial firms, including PayPal, Bank of America, Citigroup and S&P Global, ahead of a state visit by president Donald Trump.

The investment is expected to create 1,800 jobs across London, Edinburgh, Belfast and Manchester, and deepen transatlantic financial ties, the Department for Business and Trade said.

Keep ReadingShow less
Nearly 150,000 join anti-migrant protest in London as clashes erupt

Protesters wave Union Jack and St George's England flags during the "Unite The Kingdom" rally on Westminster Bridge by the Houses of Parliament on September 13, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

Nearly 150,000 join anti-migrant protest in London as clashes erupt

MORE THAN 100,000 protesters marched through central London on Saturday (13), carrying flags of England and Britain and scuffling with police in one of the UK's biggest right-wing demonstrations of modern times.

London's Metropolitan Police said the "Unite the Kingdom" march, organised by anti-immigrant activist Tommy Robinson, was attended by nearly 150,000 people, who were kept apart from a "Stand Up to Racism" counter-protest attended by around 5,000.

Keep ReadingShow less
Piyush Goyal

Piyush Goyal recalled that in February, Narendra Modi and Donald Trump had instructed their trade ministers to conclude the first phase of the bilateral trade agreement (BTA) by November 2025. (Photo: Getty Images)

Getty Images

Trade talks with US moving forward positively, says Indian minister Goyal

INDIA’s commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday said that negotiations on the proposed trade agreement between India and the United States, which began in March, are progressing in a positive atmosphere and both sides are satisfied with the discussions.

He recalled that in February, Indian prime minister Narendra Modi and US president Donald Trump had instructed their trade ministers to conclude the first phase of the bilateral trade agreement (BTA) by November 2025.

Keep ReadingShow less
West Midlands Police

West Midlands Police said they were called just before 08:30 BST on Tuesday, September 9, after the woman reported being attacked by two men near Tame Road. (Representational image: iStock)

Woman raped in racially aggravated attack in Oldbury

A WOMAN in her 20s was raped in Oldbury in what police are treating as a racially aggravated attack.

West Midlands Police said they were called just before 08:30 BST on Tuesday, September 9, after the woman reported being attacked by two men near Tame Road. Officers said the men made a racist remark during the incident.

Keep ReadingShow less