US warns India against S-400 purchase deal with Russia:
Saturday, 08 Feb 2021
Russian-made S-400 air defense missile system in an undisclosed location in Russia.
The United States warns India that it would not get a waiver on its planned acquisition of S-400 air defense systems from Russia, implying that New Delhi will face sanctions similar to those imposed on Turkey for buying the advanced equipment.
In an exclusive interview with Reuters on Friday, some political officials said the US’ warning would significantly raise the risk of sanctions on India if it pressed ahead with a plan to purchase Russian missiles.
The warning comes as the outgoing administration of US President Donald Trump has been attempting to push India to scrap the mega $5.5 billion deal for five air defense systems with Russia and avoid a diplomatic crisis between the two countries.
Washington has said New Delhi does not have a wide waiver from a 2017 US law, known as the Countering America’s Adversaries through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) legislation, which aims to deter countries from purchasing Russian military hardware.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, a US embassy spokesperson in the Indian capital said the Trump administration was aware of reports of India’s planned purchase of the S-400s, but noted there had been no deliveries yet.
“We urge all of our allies and partners to forgo transactions with Russia that risk triggering sanctions under the CAATSA. CAATSA does not have any blanket or country-specific waiver provision,” the spokesperson told Reuters.
“We have not made any waiver determinations with respect to Indian transactions with Russia
