US trade adviser tells India to act like strategic partner, criticizes Russian oil imports

In a pointed message to New Delhi, US trade adviser Peter Navarro has warned that India must align its actions with its announced alliances if it truly wishes to be treated as a strategic partner to the United States.

In his opinion piece on Financial Times on Aug 18, Navarro criticized what he described as India’s “opportunistic” reliance on Russian crude oil, emphasizing that this significantly undermines the world’s efforts to isolate Moscow following its invasion of Ukraine.

Prior to the 2022 conflict, Russian oil made up less than 1% of India’s imports; today, that share exceeds 30%, with daily imports more than 1.5 million barrels.

Navarro said the surge isn’t driven by domestic demand but by profiteering, enabled by India’s refiners profiting from discounted Russian crude and exporting refined products globally while avoiding sanctions scrutiny.

Navarro also spotlighted India’s defence ties between 2020 and 2024, approximately 36% of India’s arms imports were sourced from Russia.

While India is diversifying its procurement from the US, France, and Israel, those purchases, according to Navarro, come with conditions such as demands for technology transfer — which he said make India a risky recipient of advanced US military systems.

His column followed the announcement of steep tariffs on Indian goods — now totaling 50% due to additional 25% duties tied to India’s Russian oil imports.

The escalation has led to the cancellation of planned U.S. trade delegation visits to India, stalling any relief from the pricing pressures.

Meanwhile, Indian Oil Corp confirmed it intends to continue purchasing Russian crude given favorable pricing dynamics.