Newyork/Washington:Donald Trump’s former adviser Peter Navarro called the meeting of PM Modi, Putin and Xi Jinping ‘disturbing’. He has accused India of getting closer to Russia and moving away from America.
Peter Navarro, the chief trade adviser to US President Donald Trump, has called the unity seen between the leaders of India, Russia and China ‘disturbing’. He said that India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi should side with the US, Europe and Ukraine instead of Russia. The statement comes after the camaraderie displayed between Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Tianjin, China on Monday.
‘This is very disturbing’
Navarro said at the White House, “This is very disturbing. It is shameful that the leader of the world’s largest democracy is showing closeness to two big dictators like Modi, Putin and Xi Jinping. This is incomprehensible.” His statement has come at a time when relations between India and America are going through the worst phase in the last 2 decades. The Trump administration has imposed a 25% reciprocal tariff on India and an additional 25% tariff for buying Russian oil, bringing the total tariff on India to 50%, the highest in the world. India has called these tariffs “unfair and unreasonable”.
‘I don’t understand what Modi is thinking’
Navarro said, ‘I don’t understand what Modi is thinking, especially when there has been tension between India and China for decades, and sometimes the matter has reached war. We hope that Indian leaders will understand that they should be with America, Europe and Ukraine instead of Russia. They have to stop buying Russian oil.’ India has defended its decision to buy Russian oil, saying it is doing so in national interest and keeping market dynamics in mind. After Russia’s attack on Ukraine, Western countries have imposed sanctions on Russian oil, after which Russia has become India’s largest energy supplier.
Criticism of Navarro and India’s stance.
Navarro took a dig at India by calling it the ‘King of Tariffs’ and claimed that India imposes the highest tariffs and does not accept it. He said, ‘They do not let us sell our goods here, this hurts American workers and taxpayers.’ Also, targeting the Brahmin community of India, he said, ‘Indian people should understand that Brahmins are profiteering against their interests.’ At the same time, India made it clear that it will continue to buy Russian oil because it is the ‘best deal’ for its 1.4 billion citizens.
