“No comments” says India; but Trump’s dramatic language suggests possibly resigned, sarcastic acknowledgment of the new geopolitical shift—the India-Russia-China alignment—say analysts
India on Friday slammed White House Trade Advisor Peter Navarro for his recent remarks, calling his statements “inaccurate and misleading” but did not comment on US President Donald Trump’s latest barb centred around a new geopolitical shift—the India-Russia-China alignment—in the World
“Looks like we’ve lost India and Russia to deepest, darkest, China. May they have a long and prosperous future together!” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.
MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal called the relationship between India and the US “important” for the central government, saying both countries share a “comprehensive and global strategic partnership”. “We have seen the inaccurate and misleading statements made by Mr. Navarro, and obviously reject them.”
“As far as India-United States relations are concerned, we have said before that there is a comprehensive global strategic partnership between the two countries, and we want to work on this partnership and take it forward… This relationship between the United States and India is very important for us.
“Both our countries share a comprehensive global strategic partnership, which is anchored in our shared interests, democratic values, and robust people-to-people ties. This partnership has weathered several transitions and challenges. We remain focused on the substantive agenda that our two countries have committed to, and we hope that the relationship will continue to move forward based on mutual respect and shared interests,” he was quoted as saying.
What Navarro said
In his recent statements Navarro accused India of having extremely high trade barriers, dubbing it the “Maharaja of tariffs.” He also spoke on how India exports a lot to the US but doesn’t allow reciprocal access, hurting American businesses and workers. Then he labelled India an “oil laundromat for the Kremlin,” alleging that Indian refiners buy discounted Russian crude, process it, and resell the products abroad at premium prices—profiteering off the arrangement.
In a highly controversial and widely criticized comment, Navarro asserted: “Brahmins profiteering at the expense of the Indian people. We need that to stop.”
Navarro also argued that Indian purchases of discounted Russian oil were funding Russia’s war against Ukraine, calling it “Modi’s war.” America ends up paying more for Ukraine’s war efforts and buying Russian oil indirectly fuels the conflict, he claimed.
What Trump said and meant
The dramatic and sarcastic geopolitical comment carries strong connotations and can be interpreted in many ways. Jaiswal said “we have no comments to offer,” however, according to analysts, Trump seems to be conveying US’ concern, perhaps frustration, about India and Russia aligning closely with China at the high-profile gathering at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Tianjin, where leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Vladimir Putin, and President Xi Jinping came together, signalling growing cooperation among the three.
The phrase “deepest, darkest China” is deliberately dramatic, a tongue-in-cheek, sarcastic comment. Coupled with “May they have a long and prosperous future together!”, Trump’s tone is definitely not sincere or optimistic. At the same time, the comments also reflect broader US unease over diminishing influence in parts of the world where ties with Beijing are strengthening especially when the US–India relations are strained due to recent tariff issues.
