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22 Jul, 2025
Dylan Green
The White House has once again creditedPresident Donald Trump for resolving the India-Pakistan conflictwhich rose in May after the deadly Pahalgam terror attack, with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt describing his foreign policy as "aggressive, results-driven, and underappreciated".
Leavitt's comments came days after theUS President reiterated that he personally mediated a ceasefirebetween the two nuclear-armed neighbours, claiming he used trade negotiations as leverage.
"Look at what the president has done on the world stage. He has ended wars, like India and Pakistan. He continues to work aggressively to end the war in Russia and Ukraine. He completely obliterated Iran's nuclear sites. He has continued to hopefully negotiate a ceasefire between Israel and Gaza, to end that conflict and release all the hostages," Leavitt told reporters during a press briefing.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed — at least 20 times since May 10 — that he brokered peace between India and Pakistan, despiteNew Delhi's outright rejection of any external mediation.
Last month, the two neighbouring countries were locked in their worst military confrontation in decades after India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied-Kashmir (POK) in retaliation for the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 civilians on April 22.
While India blamedPakistan-based groups for the Pahalgam attack, Islamabad denied any involvement. Washington did condemn the terror strikes, but stopped short of directly blaming Pakistan.
A ceasefire understanding was reached on May 10, which Trump publicly announced, crediting US diplomatic efforts. India, however, has maintained that no third-party mediation took place. According to Indian officials, the Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) of Pakistan reached out to his Indian counterpart and requested an end to hostilities.
Recently, Trump claimed that aboutfour to five fighter jets were shot down during the brief conflictin May. He made the remarks during a dinner with Republican lawmakers at the White House but did not clarify whether the aircraft were Indian or Pakistani.
"We stopped a lot of wars. And these were serious, India and Pakistan, that were going on. Planes were being shot out of there. I think five jets were shot down, actually. These are two serious nuclear countries, and they were hitting each other," the US President said.
Pakistan has maintained that its air force downed five Indian jets in aerial combat following India's cross-border strikes. However, India's Chief of Defence Staff, General Anil Chauhan, has dismissed the claim, though he did confirm that anunspecified number of aircraft were loston both sides during the skirmish.- EndsPublished By:Satyam SinghPublished On:Jul 22, 2025Tune InMust Watch