US President Donald Trump once again claimed that he brokered peace between India and Pakistan during the conflict in May, a statement that has been widely disputed. He made these remarks during an interview with Fox News.
Responding to a question about his role in bringing countries to the negotiating table during the Gaza peace process, Trump said, “Having the ability to use tariffs have brought peace to the world… You know I made seven peace deals.”
He elaborated that in several cases, trade measures were used to compel countries to negotiate. “Not in all cases but probably at least five of the seven (peace deals) we’ve done so far were by trade, that we are not going to deal with people who fight and we’re going to put tariffs on you…”
Trump went on to reference India and Pakistan, saying, “You look at India and Pakistan, I said well we are not going to do business with either of you if you don’t put it together. These are two nuclear nations. Seven planes were shot down as you know and they were really at it… I said we are not going to do any business with you, we are not going to have anything to do with you, we are going to out massive tariffs on you and in both cases they said, well we’re going to start talking about it. There are tremendous amounts of money and power that we are dealing with and within 24 hours I had a peace deal that they stopped the fighting …”
The conflict, known as Operation Sindoor, began on May 7 following a terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, which claimed 26 lives. The operation targeted terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK). Indian forces reportedly repelled subsequent Pakistani aggression and struck its airbases.
Earlier on October 3, Indian Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal AP Singh stated that during Operation Sindoor, the Indian Air Force destroyed 12–13 of Pakistan’s combat aircraft, including F-16s both on the ground and in the air, along with JF-17s and two spy planes.
Addressing a press conference on the 93rd Air Force Day celebrations, the Chief of Air Staff said that five Pakistani fighter jets, possibly F-16s or Chinese JF-17s, were shot down using the S-400 Triumf “Sudarshan Chakra” long-range surface-to-air missile system.
Additionally, four to five F-16s undergoing maintenance in hangars were destroyed. Indian forces also reportedly damaged several Pakistani airbases, including radars, command centers, runways, hangars, and a surface-to-air missile (SAM) system.
Trump has repeatedly made similar claims, including on September 21, when he said he should be honoured with the Nobel Prize for “ending seven wars.” At the American Cornerstone Institute Founder’s Dinner, he stated, “We are forging peace agreements, and we are stopping wars. So we stopped wars between India and Pakistan, Thailand and Cambodia.”
He added, “Think of India and Pakistan. Think of that. And you know how I stopped that — with trade. They want to trade. And I have great respect for both leaders. But when you take a look at all of these wars that we’ve stopped.”
Despite Trump’s repeated assertions, India has consistently refuted these claims, emphasizing that all matters concerning Jammu and Kashmir are addressed bilaterally with Pakistan and that no external mediation was involved in resolving hostilities.
Source: ANI