Narendra Modi sat down opposite Vladimir Putin in Bishkek and told him the war in Ukraine should end for the sake of humanity. He called him "my friend", praised the growing economic ties between the two countries, and added that his own state's interest always comes first. All three sentences were spoken in the same conversation.

"India supports all peace efforts in this direction and will continue to support them in the future," Modi said. And then the line that will be quoted: "Every day the war continues, humanity is in fact taking a step backwards, and every step towards peace gives humanity genuine hope for peace."

Putin replied briefly. "Thank you very much, prime minister. We will continue along that path," Russian state media reported. What "that path" means was not specified, and that is not an accident.

The number behind the fine words

India, along with China, is among the biggest buyers of Russian oil. Those purchases are exactly what helped Moscow restore its budget revenues after it sent tens of thousands of soldiers into Ukraine in 2022 and faced sweeping Western sanctions.

So the man asking for the war to end is at the same time one of the main financiers of its continuation. That is not an accusation, it is a description of the situation - and Modi himself said the part that explains it: his own country's interest comes first.

After the talks, the Kremlin announced that Putin had briefed Modi on the progress of the "special military operation", as Russia calls its own invasion. The Kremlin has repeatedly made clear that Russia is prepared to end the war only on its own terms. Ukraine rejects that as a demand for capitulation.

So one asks for peace, the other asks for peace on his own terms, and the conversation is held in a language both agree on. Is that kind of peace peace, or just a name for the outcome one side already wants?

The Balkans recognise this scene. Peace efforts everyone supports, negotiating tables everyone sits at, and solutions ultimately written by whoever holds more power. The only variable is how many years pass between the speech and the signature.