We regret…: Ukraine apologizes for Kali tweet, says country respects Indian culture

Ukraine’s Deputy Foreign Minister Emine Dzhaparova on Tuesday issued an apology after the country’s ministry of defence tweeted a picture of Goddess Kali.

Emine Dzhaparova said Ukraine “regrets” the defence ministry’s depiction of goddess Kali in a “distorted manner” and that the European country “respects unique Indian culture and highly appreciates support from India”.

This comes a day after the tweet in question sparked outrage among netizens. Kanchan Gupta, senior advisor, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting called the image “an assault on Hindu sentiments”. Gupta was among the many netizens who demanded an apology from Ukraine over the image.

The Ukraine defence ministry’s tweet, which has now been deleted, was captioned “Work of art” with an image of Goddess Kali superimposed over a blast fume.

Many had slammed the Ukraine government, saying it is insulting a goddess widely worshipped in the country after seeking help from India. The defence ministry’s tweet had come just days after Emine Dzhaparova visited India. She was the first high-ranking Ukrainian official to visit India ever since the Russia-Ukraine war broke out in February, 2022.

Emine had met Union Minister Meenakshi Lekhi and handed her a letter from Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking India’s intervention in the Russia-Ukraine war.