US President Donald Trump Friday once again claimed that his administration played a key role in defusing a potential nuclear conflict between India and Pakistan, crediting trade diplomacy for brokering peace.
“We stopped India and Pakistan from fighting. I believe that could have turned out into a nuclear disaster. They’re great leaders in those countries, and they understood and they agreed, and that all stopped,” Trump said, addressing the media at Oval Office on the Elon Musk’s final day at the White House after he stepped down from his government role.
Trump said tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbours had not only threatened regional peace but also impacted trade discussions. “We talk trade, and we say we can’t trade with people who are shooting at each other and potentially using nuclear weapons,” he remarked.
India, however, have issued several statement rejecting US claims of brokering the ceasefire or mediating on Kashmir. Reiterating the same, at a press briefing on Thursday, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said: “External Affairs Minister has also made clear that the cessation of firing was decided upon through direct contacts between the DGMOs of India and Pakistan.”
“From the time Operation Sindoor commenced on 7th May till the understanding on cessation of firing and military action on 10th May, there were conversations between Indian and US leaders on the evolving military situation.” The issue of trade or tariff “did not come up in any of those discussions,” he added.
Since May 10, when he announced the “ceasefire”, the US President has claimed on several occassions that he “mediated” the ceasefire between India and Pakistan and the threat of cutting off trade forced the countries to stop the hostilities.
The Trump administration even informed a New York federal court on Tuesday in a written filing that US president used trade access as an incentive to “avert a full-scale war” between India and Pakistan.
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However, the court rejected this argument and blocked Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs.
