White House trade adviser Peter Navarro used a Financial Times opinion article on Monday to accuse India of financing Russia’s war effort through surging purchases of discounted Russian crude. He described the buying spree as “opportunistic and deeply corrosive” to international efforts to isolate Moscow, adding that India now serves as a global clearinghouse that converts embargoed oil into high-value exports while providing the Kremlin with hard currency. Navarro warned that New Delhi’s deepening energy ties with Moscow—and its simultaneous outreach to Beijing—make it risky for Washington to share advanced defence technology with India. “If India wants to be treated as a strategic partner of the U.S., it needs to start acting like one,” he wrote, arguing the country’s oil lobby must “stop funding Putin’s war machine.” Kpler estimates show Russian barrels account for about 37% of India’s crude imports, while Indian Oil Corp said Russian grades made up 24% of its refinery intake in the June quarter. The comments follow President Donald Trump’s decision earlier this month to impose an additional 25-percentage-point tariff on Indian goods, doubling total duties to 50% in part to pressure New Delhi over its energy trade with Russia. A planned U.S. trade mission to India later in August was cancelled, and crude prices moved into positive territory after Navarro’s article circulated. India’s foreign ministry has previously rejected U.S. criticism, saying the nation is being unfairly singled out for securing affordable energy supplies.