A squirming Vladimir Putin has been told to halt his war in Ukraine for the sake of humanity during a meeting in Kyrgyzstan with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The two world leaders met on the sidelines of the two-day summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek, which seeks to be a counterbalance to the West.
The regional SCO bloc – which brings together Russia, China, Iran, India, Pakistan, four central Asian countries and Belarus – is celebrating its 25-year anniversary.
‘We need to move from an endless war to the end of the war,’ Modi told the Russian President, who was awkwardly looking down and away from the leader’s gaze, during the broadcasted moment on Monday.
A stern-faced Putin then slapped down his earpiece – used to hear the translation – and said through gritted teeth: ‘Thank you very much, Mr Prime Minister. We are moving in that direction.’
On the ground in Ukraine, there is little sign Putin is edging towards peace.
Instead, the Russian leader appears to be stepping up the war, launching repeated strikes across the country, including attacks on food warehouses that are now being blamed for alarming shortages and empty supermarket shelves.
During Monday’s tense encounter, Modi, 75, told the 73-year-old Kremlin ruler: ‘Every day of war sets the humanity back, whereas every step taken towards peace fills the humanity with new hope and enthusiasm.’
An awkward looking Vladimir Putin was told to halt his interminable war in Ukraine for the sake of humanity during a meeting in Kyrgyzstan with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi
Modi called for an end to the four-and-a-half-year war, calling peace ‘crucial for the well-being of humanity’
A stern-faced Putin then slapped down his earpiece, used to hear the translation, as he addressed Modi’s plea
He urged an end to the four-and-a-half-year war, calling peace ‘crucial for the well-being of humanity’ as he confronted an uncomfortable-looking Putin:
‘A peaceful resolution to all issues at the earliest is the call of humanity, and this is India’s message.
‘The land of Gandhi and Buddha shares a single message: the path of peace.’
This followed the Russian president’s accusations, during an August 22 address, that Ukraine is opening a ‘Pandora’s box’ and threatened ‘blowback on the most sensitive sectors of your economy’.
Earlier that day, speaking to United Russia, the Kremlin’s ruling party, he dismissed suggestions that the war was coming to an end. ‘The special military operation continues,’ he said. ‘We will move only forward.’
It comes as ordinary Russians are increasingly bearing the brunt of the war, facing relentless Ukrainian drone attacks, internet restrictions and a struggling economy.
According to The Economist, discontent is even greater among Russia’s elites, with one insider claiming they are increasingly frustrated by the length of the conflict.
Mr Putin reportedly believes he could be at risk if he ends the war without achieving at least his minimum goal of capturing the entire Donbas region.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands on Monday during a meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit
Members of the delegations, led by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, attend a meeting on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit
Smoke rises in Ukraine’s Kyiv amid a Russian drone attack on Monday
‘They will hang me,’ he reportedly said, according to an insider cited by The Economist.
Russia has suffered an estimated 1.4 million battlefield casualties, including up to 450,000 deaths, since launching its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, according to the Centre for Strategic & International Studies.
Meanwhile, Moscow’s losses are now thought to be outpacing recruitment, with more than 30,000 troops killed or wounded each month in 2026 against an estimated 27,000 new recruits.
For every Ukrainian casualty, Russia is now suffering almost eight of its own, compared with just two or three for much of the conflict. The growing disparity has been driven in large part by Ukraine’s widespread use of drones, including AI-enabled weapons.
Putin also met with ally Chinese President Xi Jinping at the summit on Monday as they discussed Ukraine, Russian media reported.
Although they reportedly discussed Ukraine, it was not the main theme of their meeting, the Kremlin said.
Mr Putin and Xi have previously used SCO summits to promote their vision of a multipolar world and present a united front against the West.
Sources close to the Kremlin have claimed Mr Putin has chosen to escalate the war, fearing he could face backlash from the Russian public if he ends the conflict without being able to claim victory.
Russia’s defence ministry on Sunday said it was gearing up for large-scale attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure in a tit-for-tat response to strikes by Kyiv.
‘Russian forces have begun preparations for massive strikes against facilities in Ukraine’s energy sector in response to the ongoing attacks by the Kyiv regime on civilian infrastructure and on Russia’s oil and energy complex,’ it said on Telegram.
Last winter, Moscow repeatedly hit Ukrainian power plants, devastating the country’s energy sector and plunging millions of people into cold and darkness in sub-zero temperatures.
Both sides have for several months escalated long-range strikes, targeting infrastructure such as warehouses, businesses, oil and port facilities, as well as ships, which has led to an increase in civilian casualties.
On Sunday, the Russian army claimed to have struck a plant in Kyiv producing asbestos and cement whose warehouses, it said, were used to store explosives, as well as a manufacturer of drones and munitions.
On Saturday, a Russian strike on an ammunition depot in the suburbs of the Ukrainian capital triggered a huge explosion and killed at least 37 people.
Firefighters deal with the aftermath of a Russian drone strike in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv
Ukraine for its part attacked an oil refinery with drones in northwestern Russia, causing a fire, according to local authorities.
Meanwhile, Nato is facing a particularly fraught moment, as Russian drones repeatedly test the defences of countries along the alliance’s eastern frontier.
But other European nations are also increasingly coming under threat.
Just last week, Russia threatened to target British factories in a ‘semi-military’ response to the UK’s support for Ukraine.
On Monday, Moscow accused the UK of ‘participating in this war’ after Andy Burnham arrived in Kyiv for his first foreign visit since becoming Prime Minister.
Mr Burnham had announced that the European defence firm MBDA had been given permission to share information on UK components for the long-range Scalp missile, meaning Ukraine could start manufacturing them locally.
The move sparked a furious reaction from the Kremlin, with a senior Putin adviser warning of a more aggressive response and claiming Russia now views the UK as ‘evil number one’.
Russia’s former deputy foreign minister Andrey Fedorov told BBC’s Newsnight that Russia’s response to Mr Burnham’s announcement had been ‘very negative’.
Kyiv residents wait out an air raid and resumption of the metro train service during a Russian drone attack on Monday
The roof of a facility building in flames on Sunday following a Russian airstrike in Kramatorsk, Ukraine
Asked about the threat, Mr Fedorov said: ‘There’s a very serious political and public pressure on President Putin today, to undertake certain measures against UK, because he is considering UK as part of the war in Ukraine, and assistance from the UK is considered as a direct involvement of UK in this war.’
He warned a new stage of escalation would see a ‘not only verbal but maybe some visible reaction’ from Russia towards the UK.
Explaining what this would look like, Mr Fedorov said: ‘It might be so-called technical reaction, maybe some hackers attack from unknown source – not from official level, of course.
‘There might be different political steps. And I cannot exclude 100 per cent that there might be some semi-military, for example.
He said British factories producing drones for Ukraine could be targeted in such a move by ‘unknown sources’.
Hackers would also target what he described as ‘concrete enterprises’ linked to the production of drones or components for Storm Shadow (the British version of Scalp) missiles.
Mr Fedorov explained that by Mr Burnham handing over blueprints for the manufacturing of missiles in Ukraine, Britain has become ‘much more involved’ in the war.
‘Moscow is considering steps by UK Prime Minister as direct military involvement into this conflict,’ he added.
A firefighting helicopter flies above a burning Wildberries, the Russian version of Amazon, facility following a reported Ukrainian drone strike
Mr Fedorov’s comments come after Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov claimed on Monday that ‘Britain is participating in this war’ on the side of Ukraine.
‘Britain methodically and regularly pours fuel on the fire and methodically and regularly plots to prevent any progress in the peace process.’
He added Russian armed forces were intent on identifying ‘the production sites of such missiles’ and ‘the production sites of other military equipment’ in order to destroy them.
But Mr Burnham insisted there would be no let-up in the UK’s support for Ukraine against Mr Putin’s aggression, branding Russia’s threats to the UK ‘outrageous’.
‘Who started the fire? That’s the question, isn’t it,’ he said.
Meanwhile, Western intelligence assessments have grown increasingly stark, with US officials worried Moscow could attempt to seize Nato territory within weeks.
Potential scenarios range from a major cyber attack to armed groups occupying territory to an incursion along Nato’s eastern flank.
Moscow has already been accused of waging a shadow war across the continent through sabotage, cyber attacks, drones, disinformation and intimidation – tactics designed to cause disruption while staying below the threshold for a military response.
British spy chief Anne Keast-Butler, director of GCHQ, has warned that the UK and its allies now occupy ‘a space between peace and war’, with Russian activity stretching ‘from the seabed to cyberspace’.
Security experts have told Mr Burnham to be prepared for a ‘direct response’ from Mr Putin following his declaration of Britain’s ‘unwavering’ support for Volodymyr Zelensky’s forces.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login