EAM S Jaishankar referred to a national consensus on the importance of dialogue and diplomacy

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Thursday briefed the Parliamentary Consultative Committee on Foreign Affairs on the developments in war-torn Ukraine.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar later said there was a strong and unanimous message of support for efforts to bring back all Indians from Ukraine.

Member of Parliament from the Opposition Congress party Sashi Tharoor also said all parties were united in their desire to see Indian nationals return safely home.

In a tweet, EAM Jaishankar said, "Just completed a MEA consultative committee meeting on developments in Ukraine.

A good discussion on the strategic and humanitarian aspects of the issue.

Strong and unanimous message of support for efforts to bring back all Indians from Ukraine”.

"A national consensus on the importance of dialogue and diplomacy.

Thank all members for their participation," Jaishankar added.

The 21-member Consultative Committee is headed by Jaishankar, who made the presentation along with Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla.

Nine MPs from six political parties attended the meeting. The list included Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and Shiv Sena's Rajya Sabha member Priyanka Chaturvedi.

Congress MP and Consultative Committee Member Tharoor in a series of tweets said that the meeting of the Consultative Committee on External Affairs on Ukraine was excellent.

“My thanks to @DrSJaishankar & his colleagues for a comprehensive briefing & candid responses to our questions &concerns. This is the spirit in which foreign policy should be run,” Tharoor said in the first part of his tweet.

“I have declined media requests for comments since the meeting is confidential. However we urged MEA to issue a more detailed statement than usual. The meeting took place in a constructive spirit & all parties are united in their desire to see our nationals return safely home,” he said in the second part.

“Frank discussions took place in an amicable atmosphere, a reminder that when it comes to national interests we are all Indians first and foremost,” the Congress MP said in the last part of his tweet.