US ‘sorting’ out CAATSA sanctions waiver for India

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 4

The US is trying to “sort out” the issue of giving India a waiver from sanctions after New Delhi, on October 5, ignored US threat and went ahead with the purchase of S-400 air defence missile system from Russia.

US Secretary of Defence James Mattis has expressed confidence on getting India a waiver from the threat of sanctions saying “we will sort out all issues”.

Mattis’ remarks came at a media briefing before he met Indian Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and her high-level delegation in the US. Asked specifically about the waiver, he said: “India has spent many years in its non-aligned status. It has drawn a lot of weapons from Russia. We are here to talk about all issues that bring us closer. We will sort out all issues here today and in the days ahead.”

In June, the US had passed the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) that requires imposing curbs on nations that have “significant” defence relations with Russia. There is a provision for a waiver and New Delhi has argued out its case to the US. 

“The waiver authority is not a blanket waiver. Waivers are considered on transaction basis. We cannot prejudge any sanction decisions,” the US had said after the India-Russia deal.

India needs a presidential waiver to get around the punitive CAATSA sanctions.

In the past, India has argued that it has a strategic partnership with the US, but also made it clear to Washington that India-Russia military relations stand separate from the India-US ties and that these are not inter-connected.

At the India-US meeting, Sitharaman, meanwhile, said: “The inaugural 2+2 inter-ministerial dialogue hosted by India in September was a landmark in our relations and has set the stage for strategic consultations.”

This was the fourth meeting in a year between Sitharaman and Mattis. On October 10, just five days after the India-Russia deal, US President Donald Trump had said India would find out what action the US took against it for defence deal with Russia “sooner than you think”. “India is going to find out, aren’t they,” Trump had told reporters at the White House.