Both India and Russia had inked the $ 5.2 billion deal for the S-400 Triumf missile system, considered to be the best in the world last year

The five regiments of the S-400 Triumf are expected to be deployed along the Mumbai-Baroda Industrial Corridor as well as the National Capital Region.

The delivery of S-400 Triumf advanced air defence missile system from Russia are expected to start in 2023, says the government.

Responding to questions, minister of state in the Ministry of Defence, Shripad Naik told the Lok Sabha on Wednesday that the delivery of the S-400 missile system from Russia, the contract for which was signed last October will start in 2023.

However, earlier, informed sources had said that the delivery of the missile systems was expected to start from October 2020 and to be completed by April 2023. Both India and Russia had inked the $ 5.2 billion deal for the S-400 Triumf missile system, considered to be the best in the world last year.

As reported earlier the US administration has been warning New Delhi of “serious implications’’ on bilateral relationship if it went through with the S-400 deal with Russia. The US imposed sanctions against Russia under the US Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) law which restricts defence purchases from Russia.

Naik informed the House in response to a question related to CAATSA, that “the government takes sovereign decisions based on threat perception, operational and technological aspects to keep the armed forces in a state of readiness to meet the entire spectrum of security challenges.”

To work around the US sanctions, the two countries have decided on the mode of payment in an effort to ensure that there will be no delays in the delivery of the S-400 air defence systems to India. The five regiments of the S-400 Triumf are expected to be deployed along the Mumbai-Baroda Industrial Corridor as well as the National Capital Region.

These missile systems will form the backbone of the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) air defence system. As has been reported by the Financial Express Online, the IAF officers and men will soon be going to Moscow for getting trained on the system.