DELIVERABLES IN MODI'S PROPOSED UKRAINE VISIT

AS optics go, the widely speculated visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Ukraine next month could draw the biggest global eyeballs, especially after his Moscow trip earlier this month drew negative vibes from the Western bloc.

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Moscow was Modi's first port of call after beating anti-incumbency for the third consecutive time to lead the nation, a rarity in a functioning democracy. His warm embrace of President Vladimir Putin that day turned out to be a PR disaster as a Russian missile had by mistake flattened a children's hospital in Ukraine hours ago. Outspoken Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had shared his dismay over Modi's timing, saying it was a devastating blow to the peace efforts. US diplomat Donald Lu, too, expressed disappointment, drawing a loaded barb from the Indian foreign office, which said the country was free to decide whom it wanted to c