Like its predecessor, the Trump administration has wisely sought to make India a central pillar in its overall Asia strategy. Visiting Moscow last week, India’s defence minister agreed to expedite the purchase of the sophisticated, long-range S-400 air defence system from Russia. About 60% of India’s defence equipment still comes from Russia. Those restrictions, and extant export controls on defence equipment, raise questions in India about America’s reliability as a security provider. Better yet, US legislators should consider offering a blanket waiver to all allies or partners that could foreseeably be caught up in the Russia sanctions — from India to Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Vietnam.

Source: Mint April 10, 2018 03:56 UTC