India courts controversy as S-400 delivery draws closer
India ordered five S-400 systems in 2018. (Photo: Russian MoD)
It looks impossible for India to avoid CAATSA sanctions if its first shipment of S-400 equipment arrives from Russia as scheduled later this year — unless the Biden administration decides to turn a blind eye.
Russian government-run news agency RIA Novosti reported in late April that the Indian ambassador to Russia, Datla Bala Venkatesh Varma, said the country is set to receive its first Almaz-Antey S-400 Triumf (SA-21 ‘Growler’) long-range ground-based air defence system by the end of 2021.
Vladimir Drozhkov, deputy head of the Russian Federal Service of Military-Technical Cooperation, later added that a group of Indian military personnel is already in Russia to begin training on the S-400.
Moscow and New Delhi signed a $5.43 billion contract in October 2018 for five S-400 batteries, with deliveries to be completed by 2025. An $850
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