US President Donald Trump has once again claimed credit for preventing a military standoff between India and Pakistan. Speaking at a Board of Peace meeting on Thursday, Trump said his threat of tariffs is what stopped the conflict from escalating, adding that he warned both countries of a 200% levy.
“He (Pakistani PM) told our Chief of Staff that I saved 25 million lives by stopping the war between India and Pakistan… That war was escalating. Planes were being shot down. I got on the phone with both of them, and I knew them a little bit. I knew Prime Minister Modi very well… I called them and said, ‘Listen, I’m not doing trade deals with you two if you don’t settle this,’” Trump said.
He added, “And all of a sudden, we worked out a deal. I told them, if you fight, I’ll put 200% tariffs on both your countries. They both wanted to fight, but when it came to money, nothing works like money. Facing huge financial losses, they said, I guess we don’t want to fight… 11 jets were shot down. Very expensive jets,” he continued.
Trump’s remarks reference the May 2025 military conflict between India and Pakistan. Following a terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam on April 22, 2025, India carried out a tri-service military strike in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, dubbed ‘Operation Sindoor’.
The strikes led to a breakdown in diplomatic ties and heightened tensions between the two neighbours. The standoff ended on May 10, 2025, with a “ceasefire understanding.” However, before both countries could formally announce it, Trump took to Truth Social claiming he had “stopped the war.”
India has consistently denied any US involvement in the ceasefire, stating that it was the Pakistani DGMO who contacted New Delhi to negotiate the truce.
Meanwhile, Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has repeatedly thanked Trump for his intervention, describing him as a “man of peace.”
“Your timely and effective intervention to achieve a ceasefire between India and Pakistan potentially averted the loss of millions of lives. You have truly proved to be a man of peace and are a saviour for the people of South Asia,” Sharif said at the Board of Peace meeting. (Agencies)
