India contemplates how to defend S-400 missile purchase before '2+2' dialogue with US

The '2+2' dialogue has been postponed a couple of times before

Anticipating the '2+2' dialogue with US, scheduled for early July, India finds itself in a tight spot due to the sanctions placed on Russian arms buyers.

The dialogue, aimed at promoting interaction between the defence and foreign ministers of US and India, has been postponed before due to diverging interests.

Indian Minister for External Affairs Sushma Swaraj and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman are charged with the task of attending the high-diplomatic meeting.



While the Indian diplomats are optimistic about reaching a consensus on the Chahbahar port despite heavy US sanctions on Iran, India's Russian allegiance poses a bigger challenge.

The United States' imposition of the 'Countering America's adversaries through sanctions Act' (CAATSA) regulates arms trade between Russia and its buyer nations and India's recent purchase of Russian S-400 missile systems brings it under the radar.



This is likely to complicate the upcoming '2+2' dialogue as CAATSA mandates the Trump administration to punish entities involved in significant transactions with the defence or intelligence sectors of Russia.

Indian officials also reported that they are in talks with Russian counterparts to explore new ways to work around the US sanctions. The informal summit in Sochi was also centered around India's balance of power with Russia and the US.

This article originally appeared in TOI.