US President Donald Trump on Thursday reiterated his claim of stopping the India-Pakistan war in May last year. The US President said that he had threatened both Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India and Shehbaz Sharif of Pakistan with 200 per cent tariffs if they continued to fight.
Addressing the Board of Peace Event in Washington, Trump boasted of saving 25 million lives by stopping the India-Pakistan war.
“That war was raging. Planes were being shot down, right? And it was Pakistan and India, and I got on the phone with both of them, and I knew them a little bit. I knew Prime Minister Modi very well, actually. I got to know Pakistan through a little trade. They were trying to make too good a deal, and I got a little upset with them. And in the end, they got what they wanted, right? And they made a good deal…,” he stated.
India and the US announced a trade deal earlier this week. Under the interim agreement, the US reduced reciprocal tariffs on Indian imports to 18 per cent.
Washington also revoked the 25 per cent penalty imposed on New Delhi over its purchase of Russian oil, claiming that Prime Minister Modi has committed to stop buying energy products from Moscow.
Pakistan, on the other hand, signed a trade deal with the US in July last year, just a couple of months after the conflict with India.
According to Trump, both countries were able to make their respective trade deals with the US because they agreed to stop fighting.
India-Pak nuclear war can kill over 10 crore people: Study
“Many planes were shot down. It was all out… And they do a lot of business with the United States, and they sort of softened up all of a sudden. And all of a sudden, I read where there was a little bit of a pullback by one, then the other. And all of a sudden, we worked out a deal, right? But I said, if you fight, I’m going to put 200 percent tariffs on each of your countries, which essentially makes you not allowed, you know, you can’t do any business…,” he said.
Watch | At the Board of Peace Event, US President Donald Trump says, “…But I believe that President Trump saved 25 million lives when he stopped the war between us (Pakistan) and India… That war was raging. Planes were being shot down, right? And it was Pakistan and India,… pic.twitter.com/R3K3K8Igck
— United News of India (@uniindianews) February 19, 2026
’11 expensive jets were shot down’
The US President further claimed that both India and Pakistan wanted to continue fighting but changed their minds when it came to “losing a lot of money”. He also put the number of planes shot down during the conflict to 11, which is more than what he has claimed on earlier occasion.
“They both wanted to fight. But when it came to money, there’s nothing like money. When it came to losing a lot of money, they said, I guess we don’t want to fight… They were fighting. Eleven jets were shot down, very expensive jets…,” he added.
India and Pakistan fought a brief but intense war between May 7 and 10 last year. The war erupted after India launched Operation Sindoor in response to the deadly Pahalgam terror attack, targeting terrorist camps inside Pakistan and PoK.
Pakistan responded aggressively and launched large-scale missile and drone attacks targeting Indian military and civilian infrastructure. However, strong Indian air defences neutralised the Pakistani attacks.
This prompted a strong retaliation as Indian counter-strikes destroyed Pakistani military facilities and radars systems. India warned of an even stronger response if Pakistan launched further attacks, prompting Islamabad to reach out to New Delhi seeking a ceasefire, a request India subsequently accepted.