Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky criticized Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Russia, describing it as a slap to peace efforts, as the visit came on the same day as a deadly Russian missile attack.

Bloomberg reported that Zelensky said in a post on the social media platform "X": “It is a great disappointment and a devastating slap to peace efforts to see the leader of the world's largest democracy embracing the most murderous criminal in Moscow on such a day.”

The post included images of a missile attack on a children's hospital in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, which resulted in the deaths of dozens.

Zelensky’s comments came on the second day of Modi's two-day visit to Moscow.

The visit underscores the long-standing ties between Russia and India, and has raised concerns in the United States, which seeks to isolate Moscow since the start of its war against Ukraine in February 2022.