Editorial: Diplomatic win

It’s a diplomatic win for India. The US House of Representatives passing a legislation to waive sanctions on India for purchasing Russian S-400 missile defence systems reflects a strong bilateral bond that can withstand the vicissitudes of the changing global geopolitics. This removes an irritant in the Indo-US relationship that has otherwise been growing strong during the past few decades. The amendment, approved by the US House through a voice vote, paves the way for an India-specific waiver against the Countering America”s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) — a tough law that authorises the imposition of sanctions on countries that have significant defence deals with Iran, North Korea and Russia. It paves the way for India to buy an S-400 missile defence system from Russia — a deal which was stopped by the Donald Trump administration in 2018. Though New Delhi has taken a more nuanced stand on the issue of the Ukraine war that is not in sync with America’s position, it is now clear that Washington appreciates India’s compulsions and its growing role in global politics. The Biden administration has realised that expecting India to forgo Russian arms or oil is unrealistic and impractical. Lower costs, time-tested weapon systems and reliability play a huge role in India’s dependence on the Kremlin. Moreover, Washington also realises the need to stand by India in the face of growing Chinese aggression. Beijing’s unabashed territorial hegemony, military modernisation and expansion, with an aim to emerge as a new global superpower, are a challenge central to both democracies.

India has consistently followed an independent foreign policy and its defence acquisitions are guided solely by its national security interests. While continuing a comprehensive strategic partnership with the US across critical areas, India has a special and privileged partnership with Russia as well and relies on Russian-built weapons for its national defence. The United States should take additional steps to encourage India to accelerate its transition off Russian-built weapons and defence systems while strongly supporting immediate defence needs. As the Ukraine war tests the international order, the benefits of cooperation may have prevailed over the costs of disagreement as far as Washington is concerned. The CAATSA was a sticking point in India’s deal to secure the Russian S-400 missile defence system, threatening to disrupt ties cultivated with extra care by the US over more than two decades in a bid to check China’s increasingly assertive influence in Asia. CAATSA was signed into a federal law in August 2017 by then President Trump. After Turkey, a NATO ally, concluded a similar deal in 2017, the US banned it from buying the F-35 stealth fighter, which the S-400 system is partly designed to counter. Since the beginning of the Ukraine-Russia war, India has been aggressive in defending national security and foreign policy decisions taken squarely in its interests.