Vladimir Putin to arrive in India today; focus on '5 billion-dollar' S-400 air defence systems deal

Putin, along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, will hold the 19th India-Russia annual bilateral summit during which the two leaders are expected to review bilateral defence cooperation in the wake of the US sanctions against Russian defence majors.

(Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin at St. Petersburg International EconomicForum (SPIEF), Russia / Image- Twitter @narendramodi/ File

New Delhi: Russian President Vladimir Putin will arrive today on a two-day visit during which India and Russia where he will hold the 19th India-Russia annual bilateral summit with Indian PM Narendra Modi. The two leaders are expected to sign a deal to procure S-400 air defence systems and deliberate on key regional and global issues, including US sanctions on the import of Iranian crude oil. They will also review bilateral defence cooperation in the wake of the US sanctions against Russian defence majors. The major focus during the meeting between the two nations will be on the S-400 Triumf air defence missile systems agreement with a top Kremlin aide saying Tuesday that Russian President Putin will oversee the signing of the "USD 5 billion deal". "The key feature of this visit will be the signing of the agreement to deliver S-400 air defence systems," Putin's top foreign policy aide Yury Ushakov was quoted in media reports as saying in Moscow. "The value of the contract will be more than USD 5 billion," he said. The purchase will violate sanctions under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) instituted by the US Congress on arms purchases from Russia, but American lawmakers have allowed the possibility of a presidential waiver. There have been indications by New Delhi that it will go ahead with the deal notwithstanding the US sanctions. "India has maintained its sovereignty as regards to its relationship with countries. We shall maintain it in all earnestness," Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told media recently when asked whether the US sanctions will hit India's defence ties with Russia. India wants to procure the long-range missile systems to tighten its air defence mechanism, particularly along the nearly 4,000-km-long Sino-India border. S-400 is known as Russia's most advanced long-range surface-to-air missile defence system. China was the first foreign buyer to seal a government-to-government deal with Russia in 2014 to procure the lethal missile system and Moscow has already started delivery of an undisclosed number of the S-400 missile systems to Beijing. The S-400 is an upgraded version of the S-300 systems. The missile system, manufactured by Almaz-Antey, has been in service in Russia since 2007. Russia has been one of India's key suppliers of arms and ammunition. Sources had earlier said Modi and Putin would also deliberate on impact of US sanctions on import of crude oil from Iran. The Russian president will arrive here on Thursday and will meet Prime Minister Modi in the evening. Modi and Putin will hold the India-Russia summit on Friday after which agreements will be exchanged and the two leaders will make press statements, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). Modi and Putin are also expected to explore ways to further deepen cooperation between the two countries in a number of sectors including trade, investment, connectivity, energy, space and tourism. (additional inputs from PTI)