NEW DELHI (Sputnik) - India will start receiving Russian-made S-400 air defense systems in 2020 with deliveries expected to last through 2023, Indian Union Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre said on Wednesday.

"The deliveries will commence from October, 2020 and will be completed by April, 2023," Bhamre said in the lower house of the Indian Parliament while replying to a question on the S-400 deliveries. READ MORE: India, Russia Set Up Working Group for Military Co-operation The minister also noted that India will purchase the Russian systems despite the threat of US sanctions. 

"Government is aware of all developments that may impact procurement of defence equipment and it takes sovereign decision based on threat perception, operation and technological aspects to keep the Armed Forces in a state of readiness to meet the entire spectrum of security challenges," Bhamre underlined, when answering a question on the impact of the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) on the deal.

An S-400 air defense missile system ©
Sputnik / Vitaliy Ankov US, India to 'Sort Out' Sanctions Waiver for S-400 Purchase - Mattis
The minister's comments come after, in early October, Moscow and New Delhi concluded a contract on the deliveries of Russia's S-400 missile systems to India worth over $5 billion. The deal was signed during Russian President Vladimir Putin's two-day visit to India. According to Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yury Borisov, the contract has been signed in the Russian national currency.
The S-400 is a next-generation mobile missile system which can carry three different types of missiles capable of destroying a variety of aerial targets at a short-to-extremely-long range, from reconnaissance aircraft to ballistic missiles.Source: sputniknews.com