“Made it clear to India that I don’t want them to rely on Russia,” the Pentagon says
According to the Pentagon, the United States discourages India from relying on Russia for its defence needs.
“We’ve made it clear to India and other countries that we don’t want them to rely on Russia for their defence needs. We’ve been completely open and honest about it, as well as discouraging it “At a news conference in Washington on Friday, Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby told reporters.
“At the same time, we place a high value on our defence cooperation with India. And, as we saw a week ago, we’re looking for ways to improve that in the future. That will continue because it matters and is significant “he stated.
“India is a security provider in the region, which we value,” Mr Kirby said.
Despite warnings from the then-Trump administration that proceeding with the contract could result in US sanctions, India signed a USD 5 billion deal with Russia in October 2018 to buy five S-400 Triumf air defence missile systems to beef up its air defence.
Under the direction of US State Department Counsellor Derek Chollet (CAATSA), the US has already imposed sanctions on Turkey for purchasing a batch of Russian S-400 missile defence systems.
On Thursday, US State Department Counselor Derek said that the Biden administration is eager to collaborate with India as it diversifies its defence capabilities and suppliers.
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