https://www.globalvillagespace.com/u-s- ... ssia-deal/
U.S. senators file bill to exempt India from sanctions over Russia deal
In an effort to counter China, Three Republican US senators said on Friday they filed legislation to exempt India from sanctions for purchasing a Russian S400 missile defense system, citing the importance of working with allies.
Reuters, 30 October 2021
Three Republican US senators said on Friday they filed legislation to exempt India from sanctions for purchasing a Russian S400 missile defense system, citing the importance of working with allies to stand up against China.
The bill, from Senators Ted Cruz, Todd Young and Roger Marshall, would create a 10-year exemption for member countries of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue – Australia, Japan and India – from sanctions imposed by Caatsa, a sweeping 2017 law intended to punish countries that did business with, among others, Russia’s military.
The bill added to calls in Congress to waive sanctions for India
Republican Senator John Cornyn and Democratic Senator Mark Warner, in a letter to Biden on Tuesday, called for a waiver on the grounds of national security and broader cooperation.
The US’s Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) could compel the Biden administration to impose sanctions on India when it takes delivery of the Russian S-400 air defense system at the end of 2021. This move could deal a blow to the relationship, and their Indo-Pacific strategies. But if Indian leaders can acknowledge the US’s ire with Russia, assume greater burden-sharing, and adopt realism in its dealings with DC, it might better position itself for a sanctions waiver.
The CAATSA legislation compels the US to impose secondary sanctions on any entity that does business with the Russian defense-industrial complex. The S-400 delivery to India would constitute such a trigger. Most experts conclude that US sanctions on India would be self-defeating as they would damage defense relations, raise concerns about US unreliability, and harm India’s ability to shape a balance of power in the Indo-Pacific.
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https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles ... with-china
I
ndia Deploys U.S. Weapons to Fortify Disputed Border With China
U.S.-India defense ties have strengthened to counter Beijing, with Chinook helicopters seen as a game changer near the border.
Sudhi Ranjan Sen, October 28, 2021
India has deployed recently acquired U.S.-made weaponry along its border with China, part of a new offensive force to bolster its capabilities as the countries remain deadlocked over disputed territory in the Himalayas.
The buildup in India’s northeast is centered on the Tawang Plateau adjoining Bhutan and Tibet, a piece of land claimed by China but controlled by India. It holds historical political and military significance: In 1959, the Dalai Lama fled to India across nearby mountain passes to escape a Chinese military operation. Three years later, both sides fought a war in the area.
Now U.S.-manufactured Chinook helicopters, ultra-light towed howitzers and rifles as well as domestically made supersonic cruise missiles and a new-age surveillance system will back Indian troops in areas bordering eastern Tibet. The weapons have all been acquired in the past few years as defense ties between the U.S. and India have strengthened due to rising concerns about Chinese assertiveness.
Indian military personnel escorted a group of reporters through the region last week to highlight the country’s new offensive capabilities. Eastern Army Commander Lieutenant General Manoj Pande said that boots, armor, artillery and air support were being combined to make the force “agile, lean and mean so that we can employ faster.”
“The Mountain Strike Corps is fully operationalized,” he said. “All units including combat and combat support units are fully raised and equipped.”
India has moved to bolster its defenses along the border with China after the worst fighting in decades last year led to the deaths of at least 20 Indian army personnel and four Chinese soldiers. While the two sides have engaged in talks to disengage, they have yet to agree on pulling back from a key flashpoint in another border area near the disputed area of Kashmir.
India’s deployments show a frustration with the lack of progress on talks with China, said Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan, director of the Centre for Security, Strategy and Technology at the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi. “That we are looking at a second winter engaged at the border explains why India needs to work on building its capabilities and infrastructure at the border and source more equipment from partners like the U.S.,” she said.
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Gautam