India Likely To Sign S-400 Missile Deal With Russia: All You Need To Know

India and Russia are likely to sign a $ 5 billion missile deal this week. The Russian President Vladimir Putin is scheduled to arrive in New Delhi on Thursday where both countries will discuss on S-400 air defence systems and key regional and global issues.

During the two-day visit Putin will arrive at the national capital at around 6:30 PM and will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his residence in an hour, the Ministry of External Affairs confirmed

What is the S-400 air defence system?

• 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
• 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.
• The system can engage aerial targets that include aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles, and ballistic and cruise missiles within a range of 400 km, at an altitude up to 30 km, as reported by Indian Express.

Even as the US had urged its allies to forgo transactions with Russia, warning that the S-400 missile defence system that India intends to buy would be a "focus area" for it to implement punitive sanctions against a nation undertaking "significant" business deals with the Russians, India is still planning to sign the deal.

The US administration is required under a domestic law, Countering America's Adversaries through Sanctions Act or CAATSA to impose sanctions on any country that has “significant transactions” with Iran, North Korea or Russia.