US President Donald Trump reiterated his claim that he played a decisive role in “settling” tensions between India and Pakistan after a four-day military confrontation that, according to him, risked escalating into a “nuclear conflict.” Speaking at the White House alongside Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev and Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan — during the signing of a US-brokered peace agreement between their countries — Trump described the South Asian standoff as a major diplomatic success of his tenure. He claimed that “five or six planes” were shot down in the conflict and that his intervention, primarily through trade discussions, prevented further escalation.
India, however, has consistently maintained that the cessation of hostilities with Pakistan was achieved through direct military talks between the Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) of both countries, without any third-party mediation. Despite this, Trump asserted that he convinced the “two great leaders” to come together just before a potentially catastrophic escalation, framing it as part of his broader effort to resolve international disputes. He listed this along with conflicts in Congo and Rwanda, Thailand and Cambodia, and Serbia and Kosovo as examples of his peace-brokering achievements.
Trump also used the occasion to comment on other global conflicts, including the ongoing war in Ukraine, suggesting progress was being made. He emphasized that his motivation in such matters is to “save lives,” downplaying any personal pursuit of recognition such as the Nobel Peace Prize. “That was a big one,” Trump said of the India-Pakistan issue, while stressing that preventing nations from “blowing up themselves and maybe the world” is central to his approach in global diplomacy.
