Navarro backs Trump tariffs, says road to Ukraine peace runs through Delhi

White House adviser Peter Navarro has accused India of funding Moscow's war through Russian oil buys, defending Trump's 50% tariffs and warning that 'the road to peace in Ukraine runs through New Del

White House Trade Adviser Peter Navarro renewed his attack on India’s Russian oil purchases, accusing New Delhi of directly funding Moscow’s war in Ukraine. Taking to social media platform X a day after dubbing the Russia-Ukraine conflict “Modi’s war,” Navarro reiterated that “the road to peace in Ukraine runs through New Delhi.”

 

Navarro targets India’s oil trade with Russia

 

Navarro said India’s continued purchase of discounted Russian crude was fuelling the Kremlin’s war. He outlined what he described as the “India-Russia oil mathematics”:

 

• American consumers buy Indian goods, while India restricts US exports through high tariffs and barriers
• India uses these US dollars to buy cheap Russian oil
• Indian refiners, with silent Russian partners, refine and sell the oil internationally for profit
• Russia, in turn, receives hard currency to fund its war in Ukraine

 

“Before Russia’s invasion, Russian oil was less than 1 per cent of India’s imports. Today it’s over 30 per cent — more than 1.5 million barrels a day,” Navarro said, calling the surge “profit-driven” rather than meeting domestic demand. 

 

 

India has turned into an ‘oil money laundromat’ for Moscow: Navarro

 

According to Navarro, India’s “Big Oil lobby” has turned the country into a “massive oil money laundromat” for Moscow. He claimed:

 

• India now exports over 1 million barrels of refined petroleum daily, more than half the Russian crude it imports
• Proceeds go to politically connected energy firms in India while fuelling Russia’s war effort
• Fuels refined in India are exported to Europe, Africa and Asia, allowing Moscow’s oil to bypass sanctions under “a pretense of neutrality”

 

Trade imbalance with India and US response

 

Navarro linked the oil issue to broader trade concerns, noting that the US runs a $50-billion trade deficit with India. “We arm Ukraine, while India bankrolls Russia,” he said, accusing New Delhi of exploiting trade flows while continuing to purchase Russian weapons and simultaneously pressing Washington for sensitive military technology and local production facilities.

 

He described this as “strategic freeloading” and criticised the Biden administration for “looking the other way.” Defending President Trump’s decision to impose a 50 per cent tariff on Indian imports, Navarro said the move was justified, half as a penalty for unfair trade practices and half on grounds of national security.

 

Road to peace in Ukraine runs through New Delhi: Navarro

 

Navarro reiterated that “the road to peace in Ukraine runs through New Delhi,” linking India’s Russian oil trade directly to the conflict. He argued that the issue was no longer just about tariffs or unfair trade, but about cutting off what he called the financial lifeline India had extended to Moscow’s war machine.

 

He warned that if New Delhi wanted to be treated as a US strategic partner, it needed to “act like one.”

 

‘India can get relief if it stops Russian oil buys’: Navarro

 

Earlier this week, Navarro said tariff relief for India was directly tied to its crude imports from Russia. According to him, New Delhi could see an immediate 25 per cent reduction if it halted Russian oil purchases and stopped feeding what he called Putin’s war machine.  Instead, he accused India of defiance, arguing that it dismissed US concerns by citing sovereignty and insisting it had the right to buy oil from any supplier.

 

This was not Navarro’s first attack on India’s crude imports. On August 21, he described the country as the “maharaja of tariffs” and a “laundromat for the Kremlin,” claiming Indian refiners were profiting from discounted crude while American consumers paid the price.