US President Donald Trump's trade adviser Peter Navarro ramped up his attack on India on Monday, this time targeting social media site X after it fact-checked one of his tweets. Navarro, in his latest tirade, accused New Delhi of receiving "blood money" from the purchase of Russian oil, claiming that India had not bought substantial quantities of Moscow's crude prior to the Ukraine war.
"More bullshit from X. Fact: India didn't buy Russian oil in large quantities before Russia invaded Ukraine. It's blood money and people are dying. Stick that up your keister Mother Jones and shame on you," Navarro wrote.
Navarro's comments came after X's action to flag and fact-check his previous post in which he had accused India of "profiteering" from Russian energy imports. The platform, owned by Elon Musk, branded his tweet as "hypocritical" for having loopholes in it.
In his post, Navarro wrote: “FACTS: India highest tariffs costs US jobs. India buys Russian oil purely to profit/Revenues feed Russia war machine. Ukrainians/Russians die. US taxpayers shell out more. India can't handle truth/spins @washpo Leftist American fake news. QED.”
Users' community notes pushed back against Navarro's assertions. One pointed out that the U.S. itself imports billions of Russian products each year, including uranium and fertilizers, citing what was termed a "double standard" in his attack. Another note emphasized: "Navarro's assertions are hypocritical. India's lawful, sovereign Russian oil buys for energy security are not a breach of international law.
Undeterred by the fact-checks, Navarro doubled down on his attack and blamed Musk for allowing "propaganda" on the platform. Brushing aside the fact-checks as a "cr*p note," he reiterated that India's oil imports were purely motivated by profits and went back on a rant against the Indian government's public position.
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