Peter Navarro's fresh attack: 'Indian refiners got in bed with Russians soon after Ukraine conflict'

Peter Navarro, Senior Counsellor for Trade and Manufacturing for US President Donald Trump, launched a fresh attack on India and said Indian refiners profited from sanctions on Russian crude oil following Moscow's attack on Ukraine.

 In an interview with CNBC, responding to a question on imposing high tariffs on India over its import of Russian oil, Navarro said, "Indian refiners got in bed with the Russian refiners immediately after the [Russia's Ukraine] invasion, and they're making out like bandits." 

Navarro charged India was making money off the US in unfair trade. "They use that money to buy Russian oil, and then the Russians use that to buy weapons. And then we as taxpayers, have to pay more for this, for the defence of Ukraine. And so how can that be?" he asked.

Navarro's fresh attack comes as India and the US are set to hold talks on the India-US bilateral trade deal on Tuesday. Brendan Lynch, Assistant US Trade Representative, is visiting India to further stalled negotiations between both countries and finalise the trade deal. 

The US trade team's visit comes days after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi reacted positively to US President Donald Trump's comments on the trade relationship between the two nations. Trump once called India a "dead economy" and accused New Delhi of fuelling Russia's war against Ukraine by purchasing cheap crude oil from the country.

India-US trade talks hit a deadlock after Trump announced 50 per cent tariffs on imports from India. Recently, the US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick ranted that India boasts of its huge population but is not ready to buy even a bushel of US corn.