One Indian student has died in shelling in war-torn Ukraine, the Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday. "With profound sorrow we confirm that an Indian student lost his life in shelling in Kharkiv this morning," Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi tweeted. "The Ministry is in touch with his family. We convey our deepest condolences to the family," he wrote. The deceased student was identified as Naveen, who hailed from the southern Indian state of Karnataka's Haveri district. Quoting sources, local TV channels reported that Naveen was killed when he had stepped out for buying food this morning in Kharkiv, Ukraine's second largest city. Read:Leave Kyiv immediately, India tells its nationals Earlier in the day, India asked all its nationals to immediately leave the Ukrainian capital "by any means available", with Russian tanks being caught on camera entering Kyiv. "All Indian nationals, including students, are advised to leave Kyiv urgently today. Preferably by available trains or through any other means available," the Indian Embassy in Ukraine tweeted. On Monday night, Prime Minister Narendra Modi ordered four of his senior Ministers to rush to Ukraine's neighbouring countries to help evacuate not only Indians but also foreign nationals stranded in that country. "Evacuation efforts on… situation on ground continues to be complex and fluid, some of them quite concerning, but we’ve been able to accelerate our evacuation process,"  Bagchi told the media on Monday night. "About 8,000 Indian nationals have left Ukraine since we issued advisories, not since the conflict began." With profound sorrow we confirm that an Indian student lost his life in shelling in Kharkiv this morning. The Ministry is in touch with his family.We convey our deepest condolences to the family. — Arindam Bagchi (@MEAIndia) March 1, 2022 In a related statement, the Foreign Ministry had said, "The Prime Minister pointed out that the visit of four senior ministers as his Special Envoys to various nations will energise the evacuation efforts. It is reflective of the priority the government attaches to this matter." "Guided by India's motto of the world being one family, the prime minister also stated that India will help people from neighbouring countries and developing countries who are stranded in Ukraine and may seek assistance." Last week, Prime Minister Modi urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to immediately halt military action against Ukraine, underscoring the need for a diplomatic solution to the standoff.  Read:Official: Artillery kills 70 Ukraine soldiers This was after Ukraine's envoy in Delhi sought Modi's intervention in ending the Russian offensive. "Modi ji is one of the most powerful, respected world leaders. You have a privileged, strategic relation with Russia. If Modiji speaks to Putin we are hopeful he'll respond," Ukraine's Ambassador Igor Polikha told the local media on Thursday. An estimated 15,000 Indians are said to be currently in Ukraine.

India and New Zealand on Tuesday pledged to bolster bilateral ties, particularly in areas of defence, trade, space, counter-terrorism, cyber security and climate change, and also reiterated the need for a free and inclusive Indo-Pacific region. In a statement, the Indian External Affairs Ministry said that the two sides comprehensively reviewed the ongoing bilateral cooperation and discussed ways to strengthen coordination in multilateral and regional fora at a virtual meeting. The Indian side was led by Riva Ganguly Das, Secretary (East), and former High Commissioner to Bangladesh. "Both sides discussed the steps to be taken to enhance the depth and momentum of engagement in different areas, including defence and security, trade and investment, space, counterterrorism, cybersecurity, disarmament and climate change, and for strengthening people-to-people ties," the Ministry said. It may be mentioned here that bilateral defence cooperation has been more limited, though both countries have carried out joint naval exercises and their militaries have served together in the United Nations peacekeeping missions in Kosovo and the African country of Sudan.   Read: Sputnik V production starts in India; 100 million doses to be produced annually "Both sides exchanged views on various regional issues and reiterated the importance of closer cooperation for a rules-based international order and a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region," it said, adding that issues concerning equitable access to Covid vaccines globally also came up during discussions. Bilateral ties between India and New Zealand were established in 1952, some five years after this country gained independence from colonial Britain. Pranab Mukherjee became the first Indian President to visit New Zealand in August 2016.

For the first time in over five decades, India will not have a foreign leader as the chief guest at its Republic Day parade.

India on Monday welcomed the US move to take Sudan off a list of state sponsors of terror after almost 27 years and also hailed the African nation's normalisation of ties with Israel.