Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Kyiv, the capital city of war-hit Ukraine, on August 23, 2024, at the invitation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. It would be the first visit by any Indian prime minister to Ukraine in more than 30 years since New Delhi established its diplomatic relations with the second-largest European country after Russia.
“PM Narendra Modi will undertake an official visit to Ukraine later this week on Friday, August 23, on the invitation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy,” the MEA said on Monday.
The MEA also revealed that Prime Minister Modi will spend seven hours in Kyiv.
According to NDTV, the Indian prime minister’s visit to Kyiv will involve a 20-hour train journey, during which he will board the Rail Force One overnight train.
This specially designed high-security train offers a comfortable journey through war-torn Ukraine. Equipped with luxurious amenities, executive-level work and relaxation facilities, Rail Force One has been used in past facilitate movement of US President Joe Biden to Kyiv via Poland on a diplomatic visit in February 2023.
In addition to US President Biden, more than 200 foreign diplomatic missions have used this train service to arrive in war-hit Ukraine so far. These include former British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, French President Emmanuel Macron, and Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky regularly uses this train when he has to visit abroad.
With commercial air links cancelled and the skies too dangerous to fly politicians in and out of Ukraine, this rail network has become the country’s diplomatic highway.
According to media reports, the interior of “Rail Force One” is as impressive as its guest list. It has wood-panelled cabins with everything needed for work and relaxation. Its amenities include a spacious long table for meetings, a plush sofa, a TV mounted on the wall, and comfortable sleeping arrangements.
These luxury carriages were originally built in 2014 to accommodate tourists visiting Crimea. However, following Russia's annexation of the peninsula, they were repurposed to safely transport world leaders and VIPs through the war-torn country.
