Russia and India Sign $5 Billion Air-Defense Deal in New Delhi
Deal for the supply of advanced S-400 surface-to-air missile systems.
(Bloomberg) -- Russia and India have signed a major defense deal worth more than $5 billion for the supply of advanced S-400 surface-to-air missile systems during President Vladimir Putin’s visit to New Delhi on Friday.
The deal was signed on the sidelines of the summit between Putin and Prime minister Narendra Modi, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
The threat of U.S. sanctions against buyers of Russian weapons -- imposed most recently on China -- is not expected to affect the Indian contract.
Russia’s deal with India involves supplying five regiments of the missile system, Putin’s foreign affairs aide Yuri Ushakov said. In a joint statement released after the leaders’ meeting, the two countries also noted the move toward joint research and production of military technical equipment.
The system has been in service since 2007 and is a popular Russian arms export. It can shoot down aircraft and missiles at a range of 400 kilometers (about 250 miles). Turkey also is planning to buy the S-400, despite U.S. opposition to the purchase by a fellow NATO member.
"The S-400 is a booster dose for the Air Force," Indian Air Force chief Birender Singh Dhanoa said at his annual press conference in New Delhi on October 3.
Also on the table is a deal worth $3 billion for four frigates from Russia for the Indian Navy. Two of these frigates would be built in a Russian shipyard and two more at India’s state-owned Goa Shipyard.
To contact the reporters on this story: Stepan Kravchenko in New Delhi at skravchenko@bloomberg.net;N. C. Bipindra in New Delhi at nbipindra@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Ruth Pollard at rpollard2@bloomberg.net, Iain Marlow
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