Top US diplomat expects more Indian engagement with Ukraine

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said on Tuesday that he expects word soon that India is becoming more engaged with Ukraine, responding to a question at a Senate hearing over Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Moscow this month.

"I think we're likely to hear news of India engaging more directly in Ukraine. I'm grateful for that. I think India wants to play a responsible role globally," Campbell told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Western countries have imposed sanctions on Moscow following its all-out invasion of Ukraine in 2022, but "friendly" nations such as India and China have continued to trade.

Modi met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow this month just as a Russian missile struck a hospital in Kyiv, killing at least 41 people, drawing international condemnation.

The State Department has raised concerns over India's relationship with Russia, especially at a time when it has been seeking to strengthen ties with India as a potential counterweight to an ascendant China.

"I actually believe it's probably the most important relationship for the United States to get right," Campbell said, noting the huge Indian diaspora and the desire of most Indians to have a better relationship with the United States.

"The hardest things to keep in mind is that India is also a great power. It has its own beliefs, its own interests. They will never be a formal ally or partner in the United States, but it doesn't mean that we cannot have the strongest of possible relationships as allied nations on the global stage," Campbell said.

(Reporting by Patricia Zengerle and David Brunnstrom; Editing by Mark Porter and Marguerita Choy)