WEB DESK

US President Donald Trump has announced that the US would not sell the F-35 fighter jets to Turkey after Ankara purchased the S-400 missile defence system from sanctions-hit Russia.

The decision by the Trump Administration against a major NATO ally could be an indication for India as it has also signed up with Russia to buy the S-400 missile defence system against the advice of the US.

India inked an agreement with Russia in October last year to procure a batch of the S-400 missile systems at a cost of Rs 40,000 crore. In June, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar told his US counterpart Mike Pompeo that India will go by its national interest on S-400 missile defence deal with sanctions-hit Russia.

Under current US laws, any country purchasing a major defence equipment from Russia could be subjected to American sanctions.

However, US Congress has made amendments in the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) for a Presidential waiver. Many in India believe that this Presidential waiver was for India but US officials had clarified that there was no blanket sanction waiver for any country.

Turkey, a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) received the first batch of the Russian missile defence system last Friday despite repeated warnings from the US against the purchase.