WASHINGTON, July 21, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis on
Friday spoke in support of waivers for sanctions being imposed against
nations buying military gear from Russia.
The move comes amid concerns that imposing sanctions, particularly in the
case of India and other Asian allies, could threaten friendly relationships
that the US has been working to bolster in recent years.
India, the world’s top defense importer, has purchased Russian military
hardware and expertise for decades, and has been in talks with Moscow to buy
S-400 long range surface-to-air missile systems.
Last year, US lawmakers, seeking to punish Russia for its efforts to
undermine Western democracy, passed the Counter America’s Adversaries Through
Sanctions Act, or CAATSA.
“Russia should suffer consequences for its aggressive, destabilizing
behavior and its illegal occupation of Ukraine,” Mattis said in a statement.
“However, as we impose necessary and well-deserved costs for their malign
behavior, providing the Secretary of State with a CAATSA waiver authority is
imperative.”
Under CAATSA, any entity doing business with Russia’s state, semi-state
and private defense and intelligence sectors could face economic sanctions.
Appropriate CAATSA waivers allow “nations to build a closer security
relationship with the US as they continue to transition from reliance on
Russian military equipment,” said Mattis, who visited India last year.
India has increasingly turned to the US and France for arms purchases, but
is still reliant on Russian hardware and expertise to maintain its existing
arsenal.
Mattis said the main question is whether the US wants to strengthen
“partners in key regions or leave them with no other option than to turn to
Russia.”
Amid this week’s fallout from President Donald Trump’s widely criticized
performance at the Helsinki summit with President Vladimir Putin, some
Democrats called for a tightening of Russia sanctions.
In August last year, US lawmakers, angered by Russia’s alleged meddling in
the US presidential election and invasion of Ukraine, passed CAATSA over
objections from the White House to oblige a reluctant Trump to cast a wider
sanctions net and prevent him from scaling back existing measures.
The State Department did not directly comment on Mattis’s suggestion of
sanctions waivers.
“This Administration is fully committed to implementing CAATSA,” a State
Department spokesperson told AFP..
“We have discussed CAATSA with the government of India, and the United
States is working with our partners including India to help them identify and
avoid engaging in potentially sanctionable activity.”