Prime Minister Narendra Modi is attempting a delicate diplomatic dance with his planned visit to Ukraine at a time when military hostilities between Kyiv and Moscow have escalated again.

The short trip to Kyiv later this month is part of a balancing act following his Russia visit that had upset the West.

Dates for the visit have not yet been announced but external affairs ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal on Friday said: "On the Prime Minister's visit to Ukraine, we will be having a news conference shortly when we will let you know more details about it." This is the closest the ministry has come to officially confirming the visit.

Bilateral relations with Ukraine had hit choppy waters after Modi’s Russia visit where President Vladimir Putin had not only rolled out the red carpet but also hosted Modi at his dacha where the two spent six hours over a private dinner besides a walk and drive around the property.

Upset with the visit and the optics of it, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had posted a scathing remark at a time the Prime Minister was still in Moscow. "It is a huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts to see the leader of the world's largest democracy hug the world's most bloody criminal in Moscow on such a day,’’ Zelensky had posted on X after detailing the bombing of the children’s hospital in Kyiv.

India is reported to have summoned the Ukrainian ambassador over Zelensky’s remark though this was never confirmed by the external affairs ministry. Instead, what was suggested was that the ambassador had been called in for a meeting. This was followed up with a conversation between external affairs minister S. Jaishankar and his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba.

The two ministers spoke again this Friday. Kuleba, in a post on X, said: "I spoke with my Indian counterpart @DrSJaishankar to congratulate India on its 77th anniversary of independence. We discussed the development of bilateral relations and political dialogue between Ukraine and India.’’

In between these and other diplomatic contacts between the two capitals, reports surfaced of a possible visit by Modi to Ukraine. And, uncomfortably for India, the visit appears to be materialising around the time Russia has lost territory to Ukraine along its western border in Kursk.

While Modi’s Russia visit upset the Joe Biden administration as it coincided with the Nato Summit the US President was hosting in Washington, his trip to Kyiv could well coincide with one of the weakest phases for Putin in the two-and-a-half-year-long Russia-Ukraine war. Despite the developments in Kursk, ministry sources maintained there is no plan to reschedule the visit.

It will be Modi’s first visit to Kyiv and comes after repeated invites from Zelensky despite India making it amply clear that New Delhi will not only continue to do business with Russia but deepen its engagement with a country that has remained steadfast.

The visit is likely to be a short one but will still draw a lot of attention like the trip to Moscow.

Asked about the visit on Wednesday, US State Department principal deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel sidestepped the specific question but welcomed "India’s engagement in the war between Russia and Ukraine, especially as it relates to ensuring that we get to a just and durable peace that is reflective of what our Ukrainian partners are attempting to do, which is defend their territorial integrity and sovereignty’’.