Peter Navarro, former White House trade adviser and senior counselor for trade and manufacturing under President Donald Trump, criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his visible camaraderie with Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping at the SCO summit in Tianjin, calling it “a shame” and urging India to align with the U.S., Europe, and Ukraine instead of Russia and China. Navarro tied his remarks to ongoing U.S.-India trade frictions and India’s continued purchases of discounted Russian crude since 2022, alleging India refines Russian oil for resale at a premium and dubbing New Delhi the “maharaja of tariffs” amid Washington’s 50% duties on Indian goods highlighted in late August 2025 coverage. A longtime tariff advocate who shaped Trump’s trade agenda, Navarro previously backed aggressive duties on India and framed New Delhi’s Russia energy ties as undermining Western efforts, a stance critics say has further strained ties and pushed India away from the U.S. in recent weeks of escalating rhetoric and measures.