Russian envoy says possible US sanctions will not affect new defence deals with India
Nikolai Kudashev said more agreements, including on frigates and Kalashnikov, could be signed between the two countries in the coming months.
Russian Ambassador to India Nikolai Kudashev on Thursday said sanctions by the United States will not affect future defence deals between Moscow and New Delhi, reported PTI. India and Russia signed an agreement on October 4 for the supply of S-400 Triumpf missile systems to New Delhi.
Washington has threatened any country that signs defence deals with Moscow with sanctions. On Wednesday, asked if the United States would impose sanctions on India after its deal with Russia, US President Donald Trump said: “India will find out. Aren’t they?” Speaking to reporters at the White House, he added: “You will see. Sooner than you think.”
“I can only invoke the statements of the Indian leaders [who said that only United Nations sanctions matter],” Kudashev said in New Delhi, according to The Hindu. “The S-400 agreement is the largest deal in the history of our bilateral military and technical cooperation of 60 years.” He also urged New Delhi to sign a military logistics agreement with Moscow.
Kudashev denied that the announcement of the S-400 deal had been deliberately muted. On the contrary, he said, the agreement had been fast-tracked. “It was negotiated very fast, so don’t believe those who speak of protracted negotiations,” the envoy said. “In fact it was the speediest negotiation we have had so far.” Kudashev said the contract will be implemented from 2020 and will last for five years, PTI reported.
“In the coming months, you can expect more deals,” the ambassador said. “We could soon have a deal on frigates, it is very much on the agenda of the two sides, and we could soon have a deal on the Kalashnikov assault rifles.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin, who signed the S-400 deal in New Delhi, are expected to meet again at the G-20 summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on November 30.