Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday, 9 November 2026, that India is ready to act as a mediator in setting up Black Sea food corridors for grain exports. He made the claim in a post after a phone call with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a day before Russian and Ukrainian delegations were due to meet in Abu Dhabi for two days of talks backed by the United States, The Hindu reported.
New Delhi’s own account of the call was more careful. The Prime Minister’s Office said Modi reaffirmed India’s human centric approach and its consistent view that the conflict must be settled through dialogue and diplomacy. He conveyed India’s readiness to contribute to all efforts aimed at a peaceful resolution. The PMO note does not use the phrase food corridor.
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What each side said about Black Sea food corridors
Zelenskyy’s post went further than the Indian readout. “It is important that India identify what steps it can take and what dialogue it can pursue with other leaders to help bring the war to an end. Food security could be one such area. We discussed Russia’s blocking of grain exports via the Black Sea. India is ready to mediate in establishing food corridors, and we are counting on these efforts to continue,” he wrote, as quoted by The Indian Express.
He added that Russia must understand that the global economy and hundreds of millions of people are suffering because of blocked sea routes, and that both teams would stay in touch. He also said Modi had told the Russian leader more than once that now is the time to end the war.
Modi’s post on X struck a warmer but more general note. He said it was a productive conversation, that the two leaders reviewed bilateral cooperation and agreed to strengthen ties, and that he thanked Zelenskyy for sharing his views on the conflict, its humanitarian side and efforts to restore peace. He repeated India’s firm commitment to contributing in every possible way towards a peaceful resolution.
The Indian Express said this is the first time Zelenskyy has spoken publicly about the Indian proposal for a ceasefire in the Black Sea. Until India’s government confirms the mediation role in its own words, the food corridor offer should be read as Kyiv’s description of the call.
Jaishankar calls Lavrov the same evening
Within a couple of hours, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said he had spoken to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. “Our conversation focused on the Ukraine conflict and ongoing diplomatic initiatives,” he wrote on X. The Hindu called the back to back calls the clearest sign so far of the go between role New Delhi is playing between Moscow and Kyiv.
India will not sit at the table in Abu Dhabi. ThePrint reported that there will be no Indian representation at the trilateral talks, though New Delhi has kept bilateral lines open with all sides for months. According to The Hindu, the American team includes Jared Kushner and special envoy Steve Witkoff, and security guarantees for a possible ceasefire are on the agenda.
The Indian proposal so far
This did not start on Monday. The Hindu reported that Jaishankar first spoke about India’s ideas during visits to Poland and Ukraine in September. On 22 October, when Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk was in Delhi, Indian officials said India had sent Russia and Ukraine a four point proposal. It would stop attacks on civilians, allow grain and energy exports from both countries through the Black Sea, and end the targeting of ships and seafarers, many of whom are Indian.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said last month that India had put forward a comprehensive and broad proposal, The Indian Express reported, while ThePrint said he called it the broadest of the ceasefire ideas offered to both capitals. Jaishankar has also said India has become a little more involved beyond advocacy.
Why grain routes matter
The numbers explain why a sea corridor is the focus. The Indian Express noted that three deep water ports near Odesa, namely Odesa, Chornomorsk and Pivdennyi, handle around 90 percent of Ukraine’s farm exports. Russia also moves about 42 to 44 million tonnes of grain, roughly 77 to 81 percent of its grain exports, through the Azov and Black Sea region. The paper said the fighting there could put at least 400 million people in Africa, West Asia and Asia at risk of food shortages.
For India, the interest is not only about food prices. Indian sailors crew many merchant ships, and attacks on shipping put them in danger. Recent cases show how often Indian crews end up at risk at sea, from the 19 Indian seafarers evacuated from Yemen to the Indian Navy rescue of the hijacked vessel Azini off Somalia. At home, grain policy is already a live subject after the Cabinet raised the MSP for wheat and other rabi crops.
What to watch next
The Abu Dhabi talks begin on Tuesday, 10 November. The Hindu said it remains to be seen whether India will join the dialogue already under way with the United States and the UAE, or seek a bigger role in hosting or mediating later. The paper also noted that Modi and US President Donald Trump are expected to meet next week on the sidelines of summits in Manila.
ThePrint pointed out that India has kept close ties with Moscow, including large purchases of Russian oil, while also sending humanitarian aid to Ukraine. That balance is what gives New Delhi access to both sides. Whether it can turn access into a working grain deal is the open question.
Featured image photo: Raimond Spekking, CC BY SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. It shows a ripe wheat field in Ukraine and is used here to illustrate the grain trade. It is not a photo of the leaders’ call.
FAQ
What did Zelenskyy say after the call with Modi?
He said India is ready to mediate in setting up food corridors for grain exports through the Black Sea.
Did India confirm the food corridor role?
The PMO statement spoke of India’s readiness to contribute to all peace efforts but did not mention food corridors.
Who did Jaishankar speak to?
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, on the same evening, about the Ukraine conflict and ongoing diplomatic initiatives.
Is India part of the Abu Dhabi talks?
No. ThePrint reported there is no Indian representation at the trilateral talks.
Sources
- Prime Minister’s Office, 9 November 2026: official readout of the Modi Zelenskyy call and Modi’s post.
- The Hindu, 9 November 2026: Zelenskyy’s food corridor remarks, Jaishankar Lavrov call, Abu Dhabi talks, four point proposal history.
- The Indian Express, 10 November 2026: full Zelenskyy quotes, first public comment on the proposal, Sybiha remarks, Black Sea port and grain figures.
- ThePrint, 9 November 2026: no Indian seat at Abu Dhabi, Sybiha’s broadest proposal remark, India’s ties with both sides.