Rajnath presses Russia for early delivery of two S-400s

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, on a visit to Moscow, today pressed Russia to expedite the delivery of the remaining two S-400 air defence missile systems. At a meeting with President Vladimir Putin, Rajnath described the long-standing India-Russia ties as a “friendship higher than the highest mountain and deeper than the deepest ocean”.

“India has always stood by its friend Russia and will continue to do so in the future,” the minister said, in an obvious reference to Delhi backing Moscow in the face of US-imposed economic sanctions.

The MoD, in a statement, said Rajnath and Putin discussed various issues of bilateral defence cooperation. Rajnath’s meeting with Putin came on the sidelines of the 21st session of the ‘India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Military and Military Cooperation’. Earlier, Rajnath co-chaired the session along with his Russian counterpart Andrey Belousov.

In October 2018, India had signed a $5.4 billion deal for five S-400s, which were to be delivered by 2024. However, Russia’s conflict with Ukraine has delayed the delivery by a year. The minister said India was determined to expand capabilities of the domestic industry and he invited Russian industries to join the ‘Make in India’ initiative.