The United States on Monday (December 15) imposed sanctions on Turkey for acquiring S-400 air defense systems from Russia. It should be recalled that the surface-to-air defense system was acquired by Turkey from Russia in mid-2019. At the time, Turkey had said that the acquisition did not pose a threat to NATO allies.
India has also signed a similar agreement with Russia and is scheduled to receive the S-400 air defense system from Moscow in 2021. The sanctions imposed by the United States on Turkey have made India cautious and New Delhi is closely following the decision. taken by the US administration. In particular, outgoing President Donald Trump has granted a waiver to India and it remains to be seen whether the incoming Biden administration would continue with the same.
Why does India need the S-400 air defense missile system?
The S-400 Triumf is a mobile surface-to-air missile (SAM) system and is seen as the world’s most dangerous operationally deployed modern long-range SAM (MLR SAM). Experts say the S-400 is far better than the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system developed in the US.
The system is capable of tracking 100 targets in the air and attacking six of them simultaneously.
This advanced air defense system is crucial for India because China is also buying the system. Although China sees the acquisition of the S-400 system as a “game changer”, it is not very effective against India.
The acquisition of the S-400 system is very important for India to counter attacks in a two-front war.
What is CAATSA?
The Against America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) was passed unanimously by the United States Congress in 2017. The main purpose of the law is to counter Iran, Russia, and North Korea through punitive measures.
Section 231 of the Act authorizes the President of the United States to impose at least five of the 12 listed sanctions, listed in Section 235 of the Act, on individuals involved in a “significant transaction” with the defense and intelligence sectors. Russians.
CAATSA, if strictly implemented, would seriously affect India’s arms purchases from Russia.
In addition to the S-400 air defense system, CAATSA can also affect Project 1135.6 frigates and Ka226T helicopters. It will affect joint ventures such as Indo Russian Aviation Ltd, Multi-Role Transport Aircraft Ltd and Brahmos Aerospace.
“We hope that other countries in the world will also take note that the United States will fully implement the CAATSA Section 231 sanctions and that they should avoid further acquisitions of Russian equipment, especially those that could trigger sections,” said the Under Secretary for International Security and No Proliferation. Christopher Ford said after announcing the sanctions against Turkey.
It should be recalled that in 2018, India signed an agreement worth 5.43 billion dollars for five units of Russia’s S-400 anti-missile system. The Indian government had decided to end the deal despite objections from the United States.
The United States has repeatedly warned India not to buy weapons from Russia, while threatening to impose action under CAATSA and the incentive of an alternative anti-missile system.
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It appears that President-elect Joe Biden’s policy on arms purchases by countries may not change much because several Democratic leaders support CAATSA.
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