‘I Ended It in 24 Hours,’ Trump on India-Pakistan Clash

News Desk 

Tokyo: US President Donald Trump has once again claimed credit for preventing a potential war between India and Pakistan, saying his intervention helped end the military confrontation in May that saw the loss of several Indian aircraft.

Speaking at a dinner with business leaders in Japan, Trump said that his pressure through trade restrictions and diplomacy played a key role in halting the conflict between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.

“If you look at India and Pakistan, they were going at it — seven brand-new, beautiful planes were shot down,” Trump said. “I told [Indian Prime Minister] Modi and [Pakistani Prime Minister] Shehbaz Sharif — both very good men — and also Field Marshal [Asim Munir] that we’re not doing any trade if you’re going to fight. Within 24 hours, that was the end of that.”

Trump described the move as “amazing,” adding that trade pressure was responsible for “70 per cent of the reason we didn’t have wars.”

The remarks came days after his speech at a Diwali celebration at the White House on October 22, where he reiterated that he had personally urged Prime Minister Modi to avoid war with Pakistan. “We have no war with Pakistan and India. That was a very, very good thing,” Trump said, calling Modi “a great person” and “a great friend.”

Trump claimed he has prevented eight wars during his presidency through what he described as “deals and trade diplomacy,” including the May standoff between India and Pakistan.

The clash between the two countries erupted in May following a deadly attack on tourists in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam area, which New Delhi blamed on Islamabad. Pakistan denied involvement, calling the accusation baseless.

India carried out cross-border attacks that killed several civilians in Pakistan, prompting a retaliatory response from the Pakistan Armed Forces under “Operation Bunyan-um-Marsoos.” Pakistan shot down six Indian Air Force jets, including three Rafales, along with dozens of drones.

The hostilities ended after 87 hours on May 10 with a ceasefire agreement reportedly brokered by the United States.

Trump has repeatedly taken credit for helping defuse tensions between India and Pakistan, who have fought three wars since independence and remain locked in dispute over Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).