‘Brahmins profiteering at expense of…’: White House trade adviser Peter Navarro’s fresh take on India-Russia oil trade
In a bid to defend US President Donald Trump’s 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods, White House trade advisor Peter Navarro Sunday once again launched a fresh wave of criticism against India, accusing the country of fuelling Russia’s aggression against Ukraine through its oil trade with Moscow.
Labelling New Delhi as “nothing but a laundromat for the Kremlin”, Navarro, in an interview with Fox News, alleged that the Brahmins were profiteering at the “expense of the Indian people”.
“India is the maharaja of tariffs. They have the highest tariffs in the world. They export us a bunch of stuff. So, who gets hurt? Workers in America, taxpayers, Ukrainians. Modi is a great leader. I don’t understand why he is getting into bed with Putin and Xi Jinping when India is the biggest democracy in the world,” the White House official said.
“I would simply say this to Indian people to understand what is going on here. You have got Brahmins profiteering at the expense of the Indian people, and we want that to stop,” he added.
WTAF???? Another head scratcher from Peter Navarro, “You have brahmins profiteering at the expense of the Indian people.” If someone can explain this to me, please do. pic.twitter.com/rO0zulJdEE
— Poonam Sharma (@poonam_s) August 31, 2025
Navarro’s remarks come as Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on his visit to China, a first in seven years, for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit, where he met Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
‘Strategic freeloading’
With the United States’ 50% tariffs on Indian goods coming into effect on Wednesday (Aug 27), Navarro has repeatedly trained his guns on India.
Earlier, he had shared a post on social media platform X describing India’s foreign policy as “strategic freeloading”, which he said was being “confronted” by Trump.
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“The Biden admin largely looked the other way at this madness. President Trump is confronting it. A 50% tariff—25% for unfair trade and 25% for national security—is a direct response,” he said in a post on X.
1/ President Trump’s 50% tariffs on Indian imports are now in effect.
This isn’t just about India’s unfair trade—it’s about cutting off the financial lifeline India has extended to Putin’s war machine. 🧵 pic.twitter.com/bwLaL9dBTv
— Peter Navarro (@RealPNavarro) August 28, 2025
“If India, the world’s largest democracy, wants to be treated like a strategic partner of the U.S., it needs to act like one. The road to peace in Ukraine runs through New Delhi,” the White House official added.
He then justified Trump’s 50 percent tariffs on Indian imports and alleged that the move was “cutting off the financial lifeline India has extended to Putin’s war machine.”
“It doesn’t stop there. India continues to buy Russian weapons—while demanding that US firms transfer sensitive military tech and build plants in India. That’s strategic freeloading,” Trump’s close aide said.