Trump's trade counsellor Navarro a convicted felon: His claim 'India uses US dollars to buy Russian oil' called out

One of the key players in the tariff saga unleashed by US President Donald Trump is Peter Navarro , who on Thursday defended Trump’s high tariffs on India. In scathing remarks against New Delhi, Navarro accused India of using US dollars to buy oil from Russia , which in turn “uses those dollars from India to finance weapons to kill Ukrainians.”

“American taxpayers are being asked to pay for weapons to defend Ukraine from Russian weapons bought with US dollars from India,” Navarro told reporters, defending his boss’s whims and fancies. “This has to stop. This math doesn’t work. The president understands the connection between economic and national security. So that was the crux of the matter.”

However, multiple reporters called Navarro’s double standards out by asking why, in this case, China is not being called out, which technically buys more oil from Russia than India does. In response to this, Navarro made a key admission that the US is under the cosh when it comes to China and “we don’t want to hurt ourselves” with higher tariffs.

“As the boss says, we’ll see what happens. Remember, we already have over 50 per cent tariffs on China, okay?” Navarro said, leaving a small opening for a resolution.

Trump’s trade guy with dodgy take & dodgy past

It is pertinent to note that Navarro is a convicted felon who served time in prison and faked quotes for his book from a fictitious expert named “Ron Vara” (an anagram of his own name). In the DC circles, he is known as Trump’s “trade whisperer” who echoes his boss’s faith in tariffs.

While bashing India, Navarro went over the top, alleging that the US “sends a lot of dollars to India to buy their goods on unfair trade terms… India then uses US dollars to buy Russian oil.” In response to this, an Indian analyst who asked to remain anonymous told The Times of India that New Delhi earns those  dollars through “legitimate exports, not charity.”

The analyst noted that India also used those dollars to buy American products and goods, including armaments, pointing out the fact that the US remains India’s largest trading partner while Russia stands at number 4. “Not to forget India buys Russian oil with a mix of currencies, including rupees,” the unnamed analyst averred.

Soon after Trump announced nearly 50 per cent tariffs against India , New Delhi contested Trump’s claims that India hits the US with some of the highest tariffs in the world, pointing out that he makes similar claims against Canada. India also pointed out how it brought down tariffs on a range of American exports. Hence, the Trump administration is struggling to rationalise its tariffs against Indian goods.