The purchase of the advanced s-400 air defence system from Russia is under a cloud
The spectre of looming US sanctions on Russia must have been high on the agenda of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Vladimir Putin’s discussions during their informal summit in Sochi
The spectre of looming US sanctions on Russia must have been high on the agenda of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Vladimir Putin’s discussions during their informal summit in Sochi on May 21. The Countering America’s Adversaries through Sanctions Act signed on 2 August 2017 by the US Congress, basically aims to counter Iran, Russia and North Korea through punitive measures.
Title II of the Act mostly deals with sanctions on Russian defence and security sectors, its oil and gas industry and financial institutions. And though there are provisions for exceptions, nations, entities or individuals dealing with the banned institutions would also face sanctions. While the US is yet to formally apply these on Russia, they are likely to imposed sooner rather than later.
India, which depends heavily on Russian military equipment and spares, has made it clear that it won’t allow any third party to interfere in its security requirements. India’s aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, its sole nuclear submarine INS Chakra, the Kilo-class conventional submarines, the supersonic Brahmos cruise missile, etc., are all sourced from, and serviced by Russia, which also allows India to licence and build some of these high-end platforms.
But at the same time, unwilling to jeopardise the rapidly growing strategic relationship with Washington, New Delhi has already sought exemptions on the ground that Russian weapons and spares are a critical part of India’s security needs, and that none of them would ever constitute a threat to the US. But if the US still tries to enforce the sanctions, New Delhi is unlikely to stay quiet.
Apart from the fact that such an act would impinge on India’s sovereign right to procure weapons from whoever it wants, its dependence on Russian weapons means its security would be severely compromised at a time of great global insecurity. So if push comes to shove, New Delhi should politely point out that India too can sanction US companies doing business in India citing security threats. After all, two can play that game.