‘Propaganda!’: Trump Aide Clashes With Musk After X Fact-Checks Rant on India’s Russian Oil Buys

White House trade adviser Peter Navarro has publicly clashed with Elon Musk, accusing the billionaire’s social media platform, X, of spreading “propaganda” after it fact-checked his fiery posts targeting India’s purchase of Russian oil . The extraordinary confrontation saw Navarro, a staunch critic of India’s trade policies, twice rebuked by X’s community notes for his claims that New Delhi was “profiteering” from the Ukraine war and feeding Russia’s “war machine” .

The row ignited when Navarro posted on X, stating, “FACTS: India highest tariffs costs U.S. jobs. India buys Russian oil purely to profit/Revenues feed Russia war machine. Ukrainians/Russians die” . In response, X attached a community note clarifying that India’s oil purchases were for “energy security” and did not violate sanctions . The note also pointed out the “hypocritical” nature of the criticism, highlighting that the United States itself continues to import commodities like uranium from Russia .

An enraged Navarro then directed his ire at Musk, posting, “Wow. Elon Musk is letting propaganda into people’s posts. That crap note below is just that. Crap” . He doubled down on his accusation, insisting India bought Russian oil “solely to profiteer” . The platform swiftly fact-checked him again, reiterating that India’s actions were a sovereign decision and exposing America’s “clear double standard” in its own trade with Moscow .

This social media battle unfolds against a backdrop of escalating tensions between the US and India. Navarro has been at the forefront of the Trump administration’s attacks, branding India the “Maharaja of tariffs,” a “laundromat for the Kremlin,” and making inflammatory remarks about “Brahmins profiteering at the expense of Indian people”—a comment New Delhi has firmly rejected as “inaccurate and misleading” .

His aggressive stance contrasts sharply with President Trump’s recent conciliatory tone, in which he referred to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as his “friend” and described the India-US relationship as “special,” creating confusing and conflicting signals from the White House