US Defence Secretary Mattis Warns That Sanctions Against India For Using Russian Weapons Would Hurt The US More
United States Defense Secretary James Mattis has urged the United States Congress to provide India a national security waiver, saying that using a newly-enacted to impose sanctions for purchasing the Russian S-400 defence system would hurt the United States more than Russia. Mattis said that India and other countries that are looking to source defence equipment from non-Russian manufacturers need to be provided an exemption under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sancations Act (CAATSA).
India is currently in advanced stages of negotiation with Russia to procure five S-400 systems worth $4.5 billion. The S-400 Triumf air defence missile system can take out hostile aircraft, drones and missiles from as far as 400 km. It can fire three types of missiles and engage 36 targets simultaneously.
There is no national security waiver to what is referred to as the CAATSA Act, the specific act that says that, if another nation buys military equipment from Russia, then we will not sell them ours. There are nations in the world which are trying to turn away from formerly Russian-sourced weapons and systems like this. We only need to look at India, Vietnam and some others to recognise that, eventually, we’re going to paralyse ourselves. So what we ask for is that the Senate and the House pass a national security waiver in the hand of the secretary of state — I’m not asking for myself. Foreign policy is driven from Foggy Bottom. So, if he has the waiver authority and I can go to him and show it’s in our best interest, then we get an internal management of this process, but it keeps us from being boxed in by the Russians.United States Secretary of Defense James Mattis
Over the recent past, several lawmakers in the US have raised issues on CAATSA, particularly with respect to India and Vietnam. They have urged incoming Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to look into the matter, fearing that any new sanctions would hit them hard. Their contention is that with both nations, especially India looking to move away from the legacy of acquiring Russian-made weapons and in the wake of renewed US-India ties, sanctions would need to be lifted to prevent bilateral ties from deteriorating.