US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has welcomed India's role in efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine war, saying Delhi has played "a very positive role in a very difficult conflict".
He also admitted that a Black Sea ceasefire has proved hard to achieve because the strikes there have strategic value for both combatants.
Rubio made the remarks in an interview with The Indian Express during his visit to India.
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Asked how he viewed India's involvement after it put forward a proposal on a Black Sea ceasefire, he said it could be "very positive", while stressing the obstacles.
The difficulty, Rubio said, is that the attacks occurring in the Black Sea carry strategic value for the parties to the war.
That, he said, is what has made a truce so hard to reach. He added that he had reviewed a text prepared by the Indian side about a week and a half ago.
Rubio described the effort as an attempt to spare the world the consequences of the conflict for energy supplies.
He said the US welcomes India's involvement and praised its diplomats, saying they have "done an excellent job" of trying to bring the parties together. He noted, however, that the process has been difficult.
India's proposal envisages a three-stage ceasefire covering energy infrastructure, commercial shipping and the uninterrupted transport of grain through the Black Sea.
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It reportedly goes further than separate proposals from Egypt, Turkey and the US. Egypt and Turkey focused on grain shipments and halting attacks on vessels, while the US focused solely on energy infrastructure.
Media reports said the plan was conveyed to Ukrainian officials during External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar's visit to Kyiv in September.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has said Kyiv has four ceasefire proposals, from the US, India, Turkey and Egypt, and called India's the broadest. Kyiv has said Russia must also agree to any truce.
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Moscow has not publicly accepted any of the plans. At the UN, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kyiv was ready for a Black Sea maritime truce and that it was now up to Russia to respond.
Wheat importers in Asia, the Middle East and Africa have struggled to secure supplies from the region.
Rubio's remarks come as India seeks a larger diplomatic role in the conflict while keeping ties with both Moscow and Washington.
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