
US President Donald Trump has once again offered to mediate between India and Pakistan on the Kashmir issue, despite India’s consistent rejection of such interventions.
Speaking at a bill-signing event at the White House on Thursday, Trump claimed he had previously prevented a potential war between the two nuclear-armed neighbours through phone calls and trade pressure.
“I stopped a war between India and Pakistan, and I did it with trade,” Trump said, adding that he made calls to both countries at a time when tensions were dangerously high.
The US President claimed that both nations had been on the brink of conflict and hinted that a nuclear escalation was possible. “They were getting ready. It was Pakistan’s turn to hit. I called each of them. I respect both leaders greatly, I know them. I spoke to them about trade,” he said, adding that the threat of ending US trade ties made both sides back down.
Trump also said India is currently negotiating a new trade agreement with the United States, and Pakistan may soon do the same. He argued that the Republican Party deserves credit for this “strategic thinking”.
The comments come weeks after the Indian armed forces carried out ‘Operation Sindoor’, a coordinated military strike on May 6–7 targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The action was taken in response to the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, which killed 26 civilians – 25 tourists and one pony operator..
India has repeatedly rejected foreign mediation on Kashmir, maintaining that the matter must be resolved bilaterally with Pakistan.