India needs to act like strategic partner of US: Trump's trade adviser

President Donald Trumps trade adviser Peter Navarro has slammed India for what he dubbed as an opportunistic purchase of crude oil from Russia and said New Delhi needs to act like a strategic partner of the USIn a column for The Financial Times on Monday the White House counsellor for trade and manufacturing accused India of acting as a global clearinghouse for Russian oil by converting embargoed crude into highvalue exportsIndias dependence on Russian crude is opportunistic and deeply corrosive of the worlds efforts to isolate Putins war economy writes NavarroIn effect India acts as a global clearinghouse for Russian oil converting embargoed crude into highvalue exports while giving Moscow the dollars it needs he claimsOpening with the socalled mathematics of RussiaIndia ties Navarro claims American consumers buy Indian goods and then those dollars are used to buy discounted Russian crude oilThat Russian crude is refined and resold around the world by Indian profiteers in league with silent Russian partners while Russia pockets hard currency to fund its war machine in Ukraine As Russia continues to hammer Ukraine helped by Indias financial support American and European taxpayers are then forced to spend tens of billions more to help Ukraines defence Meanwhile India keeps slamming the door on American exports through high tariffs and trade barriers he writesIn his OpEd Navarro goes on to attack India for imposing what he claims are some of the highest average tariffs in the world along with a dense web of nontariff barriers that punish American workers and businessesAs a result the US runs a massive trade deficit with India nearing USD 50 billion annually And heres the kicker India is using those US trade dollars to buy Russian oil he statesAccording to the White House adviser the surge in Indias crude imports since February 2022 has not been driven by domestic oil consumption needs but by profiteering of the countrys Big Oil lobbyRefining companies have turned India into a massive refining hub for discounted Russian crude The refiners buy oil at a steep discount process it and then export refined fuels to Europe Africa and Asia all the while shielding India from sanctions scrutiny under the pretence of neutrality he writesWhile defending Trumps recent executive order hitting Delhi with exorbitant trade tariffs his aide goes on to allege that India keeps slamming the door on American exports through barriersNavarro claims that while Delhi has increasingly turned to the US France and Israel to meet its defence needs those deals often come with strings attachedHe concludes The Trump administration is confronting it A recent executive order issued by the President will impose a 25 per cent national security tariff on Indian goods to address the threat posed by Indias continued importation of Russian oil This new tariff is in addition to the 25 per cent reciprocal tariff already in place This twopronged policy will hit India where it hurts its access to US markets even as it seeks to cut off the financial lifeline it has extended to Russias war effort If India wants to be treated as a strategic partner of the US it needs to start acting like oneTrump has imposed tariffs totalling 50 per cent on India including 25 per cent for Delhis purchases of Russian oil that will come into effect from August 27India responding to the tariffs said that the targeting of India is unjustified and unreasonableIndia said that like any major economy it will take all necessary measures to safeguard its national interests and economic securityThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever