FROM VARANASI TO MOSCOW, KYIV, NATO AND EUROPE
FROM VARANASI TO MOSCOW, KYIV, NATO AND EUROPE
A Renewed Appeal for Peace, Dialogue and a Sustainable European Security Order
An Open Appeal to H.E. Mr. Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation; the President and Government of Ukraine; the Leadership and Member States of NATO; the European Union; and the Governments of Europe
Excellencies,
I write from Varanasi, the ancient city of the Ganga, a city that has for centuries represented dialogue, coexistence, spiritual reflection and the meeting of diverse civilisations.
I write from India—the land of Gautama Buddha and Mahatma Gandhi—with a humble but urgent appeal for peace.
On 13 February 2023, I wrote an open letter to H.E. President Vladimir Putin from Varanasi, appealing for an end to the Russia–Ukraine war through dialogue, diplomacy and the principles of non-violence.
More than three years later, the human cost and geopolitical consequences of the war continue to remind us of a fundamental truth:
There can be no sustainable security through permanent war.
I therefore renew my appeal today—but with an important difference.
This appeal is no longer addressed only to Moscow.
It is addressed to Moscow, Kyiv, NATO, Washington, Brussels and the governments of Europe, and to all those who possess the influence and responsibility necessary to help bring this conflict towards a just, durable and sustainable peace.
To President Putin and the Russian leadership
I respectfully appeal to President Putin and the Russian leadership to demonstrate the highest form of political courage: the courage to pursue a genuine political settlement that can end the suffering caused by war.
Russia's security concerns must be addressed seriously and through diplomacy. At the same time, the sovereignty, security, territorial integrity and human dignity of the Ukrainian people must be respected.
A secure future for Russia cannot ultimately be built upon permanent confrontation with Europe, just as the security of Ukraine cannot be secured through an endless cycle of military escalation.
The strength of a nation is not measured only by its military power, but also by its capacity to make peace.
To the President and Government of Ukraine
I extend the same appeal to Ukraine.
The Ukrainian people have suffered immense loss, destruction, displacement and trauma. Their lives, dignity, sovereignty and security deserve the protection of the international community.
Every credible opportunity for negotiations that can preserve human life and lead towards a durable peace should therefore be explored with seriousness and courage.
Peace must not mean abandoning the rights or dignity of the Ukrainian people.
But neither should the pursuit of peace be postponed indefinitely until one side achieves complete military victory.
Diplomacy should begin wherever it can save human lives.
To NATO and its Member States
I respectfully appeal to NATO and its member states to recognise that military deterrence alone cannot create a sustainable European security order.
European security cannot permanently rest upon an escalating cycle of weapons, military deployments, counter-deployments and fear.
Support for Ukraine's security must therefore be accompanied by an equally determined commitment to diplomacy.
The international community should devote as much political imagination, persistence and courage to negotiating peace as it has devoted to preparing for war.
The objective should not merely be to determine who wins the battlefield.
The objective must be to prevent the next war.
To the European Union and the Governments of Europe
Europe carries the painful memory of two world wars.
That history gives Europe not only a responsibility to defend its security, but also a special responsibility to become a centre of peace-making.
I appeal to European leaders to strengthen diplomatic channels, confidence-building measures and dialogue involving Russia, Ukraine and the wider European security community.
Europe should work towards a security architecture in which countries can live without the permanent fear of invasion, military encirclement or uncontrolled escalation.
Europe needs a peace that is sustainable—not merely a pause between wars.
Peace Must Be Built, Not Merely Declared
A ceasefire is essential, but a ceasefire by itself will not be sufficient.
A sustainable peace requires a political process capable of addressing the causes, consequences and security concerns surrounding the conflict.
I therefore appeal for an internationally supported framework that includes:
- An immediate, verifiable and monitored cessation of hostilities;
- Meaningful and sustained Russia–Ukraine negotiations;
- Protection of civilians and unhindered humanitarian access;
- Prisoner exchanges and resolution of humanitarian and missing-person issues;
- Protection and safe return of displaced people, consistent with international law;
- Credible security arrangements and guarantees for Ukraine;
- Serious consideration of the security concerns of Russia, Ukraine and European states;
- A broader European security dialogue involving Russia, Ukraine, NATO and European countries;
- Independent mechanisms for monitoring and implementing any peace agreement;
- Reconstruction and recovery of communities devastated by war;
- Protection of cultural heritage and civilian infrastructure;
- Long-term confidence-building measures designed to prevent another conflict.
The principles of international law must remain central to this process.
At the same time, sustainable peace requires political realism and an honest engagement with the security concerns of all parties.
Justice and security must not be treated as competing objectives. They must become foundations of the same peace.
Gandhi, Buddha and the Courage of Non-Violence
My appeal is rooted in a simple conviction that I have carried throughout my human-rights work:
Non-violence is not weakness.
Mahatma Gandhi regarded war as one of humanity's greatest moral failures. For him, non-violence required extraordinary courage, discipline, truth and self-restraint.
Gautama Buddha taught humanity to confront hatred not with greater hatred, but through compassion, wisdom and understanding.
These traditions do not ask us to ignore injustice.
They ask us to find ways of confronting injustice without destroying human beings in the process.
From Varanasi, I therefore ask the leaders of our time to demonstrate another kind of courage—the courage to negotiate when negotiation is difficult, to compromise when compromise can save lives, and to recognise the humanity of those on the other side of a conflict.
India and the Responsibility of the Global South
India has repeatedly emphasised dialogue and diplomacy in addressing the Russia–Ukraine conflict.
India's civilisational experience also reminds us that differences between peoples and nations need not inevitably lead to permanent hostility.
The consequences of this war, however, extend far beyond Europe.
Countries and communities across the Global South have experienced the consequences of conflict through food insecurity, energy pressures, economic disruption and reduced resources for development.
The voices of developing countries, civil society and peacebuilders should therefore have a meaningful place in international efforts to end the war.
Peace in Europe is not only a European concern. It is a global responsibility.
A Message to the Leaders of Our Time
Excellencies,
History will remember the battles of this period.
But it will also ask another question:
When the possibility of peace existed, what did the leaders of our generation do with it?
Future generations will not only examine who gained territory or military advantage.
They will ask whether political leaders had the wisdom to stop the cycle of destruction.
They will ask whether humanity learned from the tragedies of the twentieth century.
They will ask whether we understood that in a world containing nuclear weapons, permanent confrontation is not a sustainable political strategy.
The strongest leader is not necessarily the one who can continue a war the longest.
Sometimes the strongest leader is the one who possesses the courage to end a war when doing so can save human lives and open the way towards a better future.
From Varanasi: An Appeal to Choose Peace
I do not write this appeal to defend one government against another.
I write it to defend human life.
I do not ask the world to choose between Russian security and Ukrainian security.
I ask the world to build a framework in which Russian security, Ukrainian security and European security can coexist.
I do not ask for peace without justice.
I ask for peace with justice, security and human dignity.
I do not ask for a temporary silence of weapons.
I ask for a peace strong enough to prevent the next war.
Therefore, from Varanasi, I appeal to:
Moscow: choose the courage of diplomacy.
Kyiv: preserve every credible avenue towards a just peace.
NATO: combine security with an equally determined commitment to diplomacy.
European leaders: become architects of peace, not merely managers of confrontation.
The international community: invest in negotiations with the same determination with which it has invested in war.
And to all of us:
Let human life be more valuable than geopolitical rivalry.
Let dialogue begin where violence has failed.
Let diplomacy become stronger than the logic of escalation.
Let the next chapter of Europe be written not with weapons, but with diplomacy.
Let the language of war give way to the language of peace.
Let us build not merely a ceasefire, but a sustainable peace.
From the ancient city of Varanasi, I offer this appeal with humility, hope and faith in the human capacity to choose peace.
I hope that one day I will be able to visit both Russia and Ukraine—not as countries divided by war, but as societies rebuilding a shared human future.
With hope for peace and with deepest respect for human life,
Grandson of a Gandhian freedom fighter against colonial rule
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