S400s are effective against their best aircrafts. And they don't want other countries to have it.
So they threaten sanction and people have to play along.
[0] https://tech.slashdot.org/story/03/12/01/1226207/galileo-sys...
[1] https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/dec/08/world.internation...
https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2020/03/13/trump-threat-...
It will surely protect you against them and not be used to sabotage/spy on you.
USSR and post-USSR Russia has solidly backed India in many issues. When the US imposed bans on export of vaccine raw materials even after a month of assurances of special waivers for India, Russia agreed to supply and produce Sputnik V in a heartbeat.
Historically, here's one example- when US Ally Pakistan was committing a genocide and ethnic cleansing on its own people [0] (now the country of Bangladesh), and India was funding and training the rebels, the US sent Task Force 74 to deter India. And Russia sent cruisers, destroyer, and a nuclear armed submarine to balance the situation.
India won the war of 1971. And the independent country of Bangladesh was born.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annexation_of_Goa#UN_attempts_...
For India it does makes a lot of sense.
There is no more sowjetunion. And it is a bit frustrating, that we are in a new cold war right now, because people were too lazy(on both sides) to adjust after the wall came down. So yes, russia is an enemy again, hurey and sure it makes not much sense letting them gather direct data to boosten their air defence missiles. But this works in both ways, no? If you have the S400 - you can study extensivly its weaknessess.
Apart from that, china seems a bigger threat.
> Apart from that, china seems a bigger threat.
Russia is a direct threat of invasion for most European countries and yet they're not taken seriously (except neighbors which some have been invaded). The fact that S400 is even debated is proof of that...
US for better or worse can take both Russia and China militarily on itself... but it feels a bit pointless if the countries it protects are shooting themselves in the foot.
Because then your actions will not lead to more peace and just complicate things further.
Territorial integrity is often at odds with self-determination. In the case of Georgia and Ukraine the west argued with sacred territorial integrity - and in the case of Kosovo with self-determination. And russia argued reverse.
I have not been in all those areas, so I don't want to judge, but I do know that there was lots and lots of propaganda going on and allmost nobody really asked the actual people living there, what they actually want - which is what I prefer to apply in most conflicts. But this not so easy either, because ... does the vote of a person living there since only 2 years count the same as one whose family has been there since centuries? Where to draw the line?
Otherwise it gets ridiculed when for example occupying russian soldiers in chechenya gets the same vote as the people who actually lived there.
How? Spycraft? Sounds a lot harder than having the gear at hand.
"US for better or worse can take both Russia and China militarily on itself.."
I hope we never find out, but I am sceptical. The US budget is surely way higher, but china and russia can produce, develope and sustain their military gear a lot lot cheaper. And have more manpower.
"Russia is a direct threat of invasion for most European countries"
And well, I live in germany and I don't feel threatened by russia. I know for Lithuania it is a bit different - but they are in the EU and NATO and the ukraine is not. So the lithuanian people I know don't really feel threatened by russia either and rather are annoyed by the new iron curtain, as well.
While "most European countries" is excessive, there are some countries that are very much under threat; Poland is the prime example.
Do you know something I don't that makes this scenario likely?
Trump threatened to pull US out of NATO which would make it meaningless
Regardless of intentions, If that were ever to happen, it would put even Germany under threat from Russia's green men.
France/UK's nukes are a deterrent but its doubtful they would be used
US with troops in those countries make it pretty clear a conventional war with green men would be repelled with heavy losses on Russian side.
And germany does not have russian speaking and feeling areas, who would (at least partly) welcome green man, which was the case in east ukraine and crimea.
And as far as I know, Trump is gone.