US President Donald Trump on Wednesday once again claimed that he helped stop a war between India and Pakistan during their military conflict in May. Speaking at a cabinet meeting, Trump said his intervention forced the two countries to step back from the edge of war.

Recalling his previous claims about preventing a world war at the start of the Ukraine-Russia conflict, Trump shifted to discuss India and Pakistan. “They were ready to trot,” he said, before describing his conversation with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the height of the May hostilities.

Sitting alongside his defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, Trump said, “I am talking to a very terrific man, Narendra Modi. I said, 'What's going on with you and Pakistan?'. The hatred was tremendous. This has been going on for a hell of a long time, like, sometimes with different names for hundreds of years."

He added, “I said, ‘I don't want to make a trade deal with you...’”You guys are going to end up in a nuclear war... I said, 'Call me back tomorrow.' But we're not going to do any deals with you, or we're going to put tariffs on you that are so high, your head's going to spin."

According to Trump, the deal was completed “within about five hours” of his talks with PM Modi. He said, “Within about five hours, it was done... Now maybe it starts again. I don't know. I don't think so, but I'll stop it if it does. We can't let these things happen.”

Trump had also made similar claims a day earlier, saying he was responsible for the ceasefire announced in May. He claimed that “seven jets were shot down” during the conflict, though last month he had mentioned “five planes” being downed. He did not clarify which country’s aircraft were destroyed.

Despite Trump’s repeated claims, India has consistently rejected the US President’s statements. New Delhi maintains that the ceasefire declared on May 10 was a result of bilateral discussions. India says Pakistan’s Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) contacted his Indian counterpart to request de-escalation.

India has emphasized that the ceasefire was unconditional and reached without any third-party involvement. The Indian government has not confirmed any role for the United States in brokering peace during the May conflict.

Trump’s remarks came just hours before new US tariff measures on Indian goods were set to take effect on August 27, raising the overall tariff burden on Indian products to nearly 50 per cent.

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