Anticipating China's Threat, India Is Ready To Deploy Russian-made S-400 Missile System Starting In April

Illustration of the Russian S-400 missile defense system. (Wikimedia Commons/Mil.ru/Юрий ов)

JAKARTA - India has begun deploying the advanced Russian-made S-400 Triumf surface-to-air missile defense system, with the first units to be put into service in April, local media reported Monday last week.

In total there are five units of the missile defense system deployed by India to counter the threat from China, The Hindustan Times reported as quoted by Daily Sabah on January 18th.

India and China have been locked in an intense stalemate for the past two years along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), the de facto border between China and India in the disputed Himalayan Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir.

Tensions between the two countries spiked in June 2020 after at least 20 Indian soldiers and four Chinese soldiers were killed in border clashes in the disputed region.

Although the situation has calmed down after several rounds of talks, the two sides have yet to reach a resolution and have stepped up military deployments along the border.

Illustration of the Russian S-400 missile defense system. (Wikimedia Commons/Mil.ru/Юрий ов)

The five units of the S-400 system, which can down enemy aircraft or missiles at ranges between 40 and 400 kilometers (25 miles and 248 miles), are expected to be operational by next year, The Hindustan Times quoted local officials as saying as mentioned.

In 2018, India and Russia signed a $5.5 billion contract for the S-400 system, which puts India at risk of sanctions by the United States.

The US has long tried to prevent countries from buying military equipment from Russia, threatening them with punitive action under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions (CAATSA), which has been used against Turkey, Iran, North Korea, and Russia.

Despite Washington's warnings, New Delhi is moving forward with the purchase, arguing it has strategic ties to Russia and the US.

By comparison, Turkey has also continued its purchase of the S-400, ignoring the threat of US sanctions and saying the missiles are a matter of national security.

To note, US President Joe Biden's Coordinator for Sanctions Policy James O'Brien told lawmakers in the House last week, the US government does not want India to buy the S-400 missile defense system from Russia, according to media reports.

He also said Washington should take into account the important geostrategic circumstances in response to the growing demand from Biden to free India from CAATSA.