Zelenskyy says India ready to mediate Black Sea food corridors after Modi call
Modi did not mention the Black Sea in his post on X, and New Delhi has not published a formal plan.
Written with AI assistance from the sources listed below, then checked against them and reviewed by an editor. How our newsroom works
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday, 9 November 2026, that India is ready to mediate Black Sea food corridors, after a phone call with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “India is ready to act as a mediator in setting up food corridors, and we count on continued efforts in this direction,” Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram, Interfax-Ukraine reported.
Modi’s own account of the call was narrower. He did not mention food corridors or the Black Sea.
What came out of the Modi Zelenskyy call
Modi said on X that he “reaffirmed India’s firm commitment to contributing in every possible way to a peaceful settlement of the conflict,” according to Interfax-Ukraine. Zelenskyy said Russia is blocking grain exports in the Black Sea and that Ukraine is preparing for the talks in Abu Dhabi.
Hours after the call, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Al Jazeera reported. Jaishankar said that call focused on the war and ongoing diplomatic initiatives.
Key numbers
- Nine months: the pause before Russia and Ukraine returned to the table for US-mediated talks in Abu Dhabi, according to Al Jazeera.
- Five Indian nationals were killed in attacks on commercial vessels in the Black Sea and two more went missing, the Ministry of External Affairs said on 3 November.
- 108,837 tonnes: India’s sunflower oil imports in September, the lowest since April 2022, Reuters reported, as cited by Al Jazeera.
Why Black Sea food corridors matter to India
India is the world’s biggest importer of vegetable oils and buys most of its sunflower oil from Russia and Ukraine. Russia and Ukraine have attacked one another’s ports this year, which has choked off grain and oilseed exports and left India short of sunflower oil, the Al Jazeera report said.
A food corridor would require both sides to stop attacks on shipping and ports, Al Jazeera noted.
What New Delhi has and has not said
New Delhi has not published a formal plan, but the offer builds on proposals Indian officials floated for weeks. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha called India’s proposal the broadest because it covers both the Black Sea and energy infrastructure.
India has working relations with both Moscow and Kyiv. Ravi Joshi of the Observer Research Foundation described New Delhi as friends with both sides. The Kremlin says the Abu Dhabi talks are trilateral, with Washington as the sole mediator, Al Jazeera reported.
For earlier diplomacy on Ukraine, see our report on the G7 foreign ministers’ Paris meeting.
What happens next after the Abu Dhabi talks
Russia and Ukraine were due to meet in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday and Wednesday. Zelenskyy said both leaders agreed their teams would keep in contact. Any move on Black Sea food corridors will depend on whether Moscow and Kyiv accept a pause on attacks on shipping, and on whether New Delhi turns its offer into a published proposal.
India imports most of its sunflower oil from Russia and Ukraine, so shipping safety in the Black Sea reaches Indian kitchens as well as Indian crews. The offer tests whether New Delhi can turn its working ties with Moscow and Kyiv into a published proposal, while the Kremlin says Washington is the only mediator at the Abu Dhabi talks.