1/n) This is one of the reasons why India never went with either F-16 of F/A-18 for MMRCA and will continue to have doubts over buying F-21/F-35/F-18 etc.

2/n) Sanctions (after Pokhran-2) or cutting off military aid in the past (see thread by Tanvi) meant that US could unilaterally cut of military supplies to toe their line
3/n) Even though India signs a deal in future for let's say MMRCA 2.0 but if the administration in D.C. changes or if the administration in power suddenly decides to shift course India will be left hanging in the wind.
4/n) IAF which is in a precarious position over squadron strength would be dealt a body blow if supplies were halted something like CAATSA
5/n) If the US is serious about deepening a long term strategic relationship with India in face of an ever aggressive China it needs to see that measures like CAATSA do more harm than good.
6/n) As mentioned in thread by Tanvi Madan this gives more fuel to critics of closer India-US relationship and gives pause in Delhi to folks who see that they can't rely on DC completely as they are bound to be arm twisted over what the US wants in its self interests.
7/n) Now this does not mean that all military purchases from US will be under CAATSA threat. India for the US defence manufacturers is still a big market and need to sell to India in bulk to help their financial bottomlines.
8/n) But from the India side for any big ticket or strategic purchases India will look elsewhere (such as Rafale from France)
P.S. France was one of the few Western nations which didn’t impose sanctions on India after Pokhran-2
9/n) This is something which I had highlighted (in a piece in @myindmakers ) to be one of the reasons why India chose to buy Rafale from the French.

https://t.co/3VqYK2nKkX
10/n) And just like that new administration is thinking of revoking sale of airplanes to a partner nation that the previous administration approved. This would be infuriating for allies.

https://t.co/a8jgpQKEC4

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