According to New Delhi, US President Joe Biden will have a virtual summit with the presidents of the Quad countries of Japan, Australia, and India on Thursday.

India’s foreign ministry issued the statement a day after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin for the second time since Moscow invaded Ukraine last week.

The United States has urged Delhi to utilize its “leverage” with Russia.
Biden, Modi, Fumio Kishida, and Scott Morrison would “share views and judgments regarding critical events in the Indo-Pacific,” according to the Indian statement, which made no mention of the Ukraine issue.

The alliance is considered as a counterweight to China, and there have been concerns in India and elsewhere that the Ukraine issue will divert Washington’s attention away from the area.

The meeting might also be used by the other leaders to press Modi to adopt a tougher stance on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

India, which supported the Soviet Union during the Cold War and has close connections with Moscow, has urged Russia and Ukraine to stop fighting but has not condemned the incursion.

It abstained once more in a UN vote condemning Russia’s conduct on Wednesday.

The brief statement added that the four leaders would “review ongoing efforts to implement the Leaders’ initiatives announced as part of the Quad’s contemporary and positive agenda.”