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Exclusive: India's friction with U.S. rises over planned purchase of Russian S-400 defence systems
January 16, 2021

The United States has made it clear that India is unlikely to get a waiver on its planned acquisition of Russian S-400 air defence systems.

A US embassy Spokesperson in New Delhi said that the United States is aware of reports of India’s planned purchase of the S-400s.

He said any such move could make the country face sanctions similar to those imposed on Turkey for buying that equipment.

The Spokesperson said the US has not made any waiver determinations with respect to Indian transactions with Russia.

The Trump administration has been telling the Indians to drop the 5.5 billion dollars deal for five missile systems and avoid a diplomatic crisis.

A specialist at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington Richard Rossow said there is a narrow chance that India can avoid sanctions, presuming the S-400 purchase is completed. He said at the moment, it’s a good bet that sanctions will be applied against India.