Subhechcha Ganguly 
Donald Trump on Wednesday renewed his claim that he played a decisive role in preventing a nuclear confrontation between India and Pakistan, telling lawmakers during his State of the Union address that his intervention helped secure a ceasefire between the two neighbours.
Addressing Congress, the US President warned that tensions between the two countries could have escalated into a nuclear war. “Pakistan and India would have been in a nuclear war,” he said, further claiming that “35 million people said the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Shehbaz Sharif, would have died if it were not for my involvement.”
Since the military escalation in May 2025, Trump has repeatedly asserted that his administration was instrumental in halting the conflict. He has said the US leveraged trade negotiations and tariff threats to prevent further escalation — a position that New Delhi has not supported.
The US President was referring to the tensions that followed the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack last year, in which 26 civilians were killed. In retaliation, India carried out strikes on terror infrastructure in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Pakistan under Operation Sindoor.
Earlier this week, speaking at a Board of Peace event, Trump reiterated that he had warned both countries that trade talks would be suspended unless they de-escalated. He claimed he told them he would impose 200 per cent tariffs if hostilities continued.
In recent months, Trump has stated more than 80 times that he was responsible for stopping the India-Pakistan conflict, though he has offered differing accounts regarding aircraft losses during the hostilities without clarifying which side he was referencing.
Meanwhile, New Delhi has maintained that the May 10 ceasefire understanding resulted from direct bilateral discussions between India and Pakistan, asserting that there was no third-party mediation involved.
