Nobel Peace Prize cause of Trump-Asim Munir meet? White House explains why US President met Pak Army Chief
What happened during Trump-Munir lunch meet?
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United States President Donald Trump hosted Pakistan's armed forces chief Asim Munir for lunch after the latter promised to nominate him for the Nobel Peace Prize for preventing a nuclear war between India and Pakistan, according to the White House.White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said Trump hosted Munir after he called for the president to be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for preventing a nuclear war between India and Pakistan.US President Donald Trump on Wednesday (local time) hosted Pakistan Army Chief Asim Munir at the White House for a lunch meeting, praising Munir for his role in preventing the escalation of the conflict between India and Pakistan.Trump said, "Reason I had him here was I wanted to thank him for not going into the war and ending it..."The luncheon meeting took place amid rising tensions between Israel and Iran, with Trump considering possible US involvement.The last Pakistani military leader to meet a sitting U.S. President was General Pervez Musharraf in 2001, who did so as the nation's head of state during his tenure as a military dictator.The Trump-Munir meeting comes after reports speculated on the possibility of Pakistan aiding Iran during its ongoing conflict with Israel.Prime Minister Narendra Modi has told President Donald Trump that India and Pakistan halted their military actions last month following direct talks between their militaries without any mediation by the US, calling out the American leader's narrative that he brokered the ceasefire.In a nearly 35-minute phone call with Trump on Tuesday, Modi firmly stated that India does not and will "never accept" mediation and that the discussions between Indian and Pakistani militaries on cessation of military actions were initiated at Islamabad's request, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said.PM Modi also said that India no longer views "terrorism as a proxy war, but as a war itself", and that India's Operation Sindoor is still ongoing, the foreign secretary said.India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terrorist infrastructure in territories controlled by Pakistan in response to the Pahalgam terror attack.The strikes triggered four days of intense clashes that ended with an understanding on stopping the military actions on May 10.New Delhi has been maintaining that India's fierce counter-attack that day forced Pakistan to plead for ending the hostilities.
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Since May 10 — when India and Pakistan announced a ceasefire in hostilities — Donald Trump has on 14 different occasions claimed that he helped broker peace between the two nuclear-armed nations. However, in a press interaction on Wednesday, the US president changed his tune, crediting the countries' leaders for showing restraint. The reversal comes a day after PM Narendra Modi fact-checked the American president, saying India 'has never accepted mediation, does not accept it, and will never accept it' read more Trump for the first time in weeks, didn't take the credit for stopping the military conflict between India and Pakistan. File image/Reuters It's not often one witnesses Donald Trump making a U-turn on his statements. But on Wednesday (June 18), the US president shifted his tone and admitted that it was India and Pakistan that decided to end hostilities in May. On Wednesday, Trump speaking to reporters in the Oval Office after hosting a lunch for Pakistan's Army chief General Asim Munir said he was 'so happy that two smart people… decided not to keep going with that war. That could have been a nuclear war. Those are two nuclear powers, big ones, big, big nuclear powers, and they decided that'. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD This is quite a reversal from the past where the US president has taken credit for the de-escalation between India and Pakistan — Trump has boasted at least 14 times that he had brokered the peace. In some instances, he claimed that he had used trade with the US as a tool to get the two countries to hold fire. But how did we get there? Was it PM Modi's fact-check that led to Trump's change in stance or was it Munir's lunch? Trump's change of heart After weeks of loudly boasting of brokering peace between nuclear rivals India and Pakistan , Trump did a 180, crediting the two countries' leaders directly for ending the hostilities. In remarks to the media following his lunch with Pakistan's Army Chief General Asim Munir, Trump praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and General Munir as 'very smart people', adding that they chose not to turn the conflict into a 'nuclear war'. 'They were both here, but I was with Modi a few weeks ago. He was here actually, but now we speak to him. And I'm so happy that two smart people, plus you know, people on their staff too, but two smart people, two very smart people decided not to keep going with that war. That could have been a nuclear war. Those are two nuclear powers, big ones, big, big nuclear powers, and they decided that,' Trump was quoted as saying. 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This claim came despite the fact that Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a telephonic conversation with the US president and told him that India has never accepted mediation, does not accept it, and will never do so in the future. India's Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri revealing details about the phone call, which was held on Tuesday night, said that Modi clarified India's position to Trump. 'PM Modi clearly told President Trump that during this entire incident, at no time, at any level, were there any talks on issues like India-US trade deal or mediation between India and Pakistan through America,' said Misri. 'PM Modi stressed that India has never accepted mediation, does not accept it, and will never accept it.' POTUS @realDonaldTrump called PM @narendramodi. 🎥 Listen to Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri's statement on the telephone conversation. — Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) June 18, 2025 STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Furthermore, Misri in his remarks said that PM Modi also reiterated the statement, 'Goli ka jawab gole se' to the US president. The official added that US president also invited Modi to stop over in the US. However, due to prior engagements, PM Modi had to decline the offer. Lunch with Pakistan's Munir Some observers also note that Trump's change in stance coincides with his lunch with Munir and believe that meeting with the Pakistani general may also have had something to do with Trump's change in stance. When asked the purpose of meeting with Munir, Trump said, 'Reason I had him here was I wanted to thank him for not going into the war and ending it.' The US president further added that he was honoured to meet Munir and the two had discussed Iran, which he said Pakistan knew better than most. 'They (Pakistani leadership) know Iran very well, better than most. They're not happy about anything. It's not that they're bad with Israel. They know them both actually, but they probably, maybe, they know Iran better, but they see what's going on and he agreed with me,' he told reporters. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The White House also confirmed that the meeting was held in recognition of Munir's remarks lauding Trump's role in halting a potential escalation between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. Reasons for Trump doubling down on India-Pak claims But why is it that Trump until Wednesday continued to boast of his role in brokering peace between India and Pakistan? Most Trump analysts believe that it's part of a larger pattern with John Bolton, Trump's former national security advisor, telling ANI, 'It's nothing personal to India. This is Donald Trump, who takes credit for everything. 'It's typical of Trump because he would jump in before everyone else could take credit. It may be irritating, probably is irritating to many people, but it's nothing against India, it's just Trump being Trump.' It's also an attempt by the US president to reassert his image of a peacemaker. While campaigning for the US presidential elections in 2024, Trump had vowed to immediately stop the Ukraine and Russia war once he won. However, that promise remains unfulfilled. Furthermore, the Israel-Hamas war still rages on and he hasn't been able to stop it. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Some also note that Trump's claims were his way of expressing his displeasure with India. As the Economic Times wrote that Trump may have view India's rebuttals as a personal affront rather than a routine diplomatic clarification. This may have bruised his ego, propelling him to restate the claim ever more publicly and forcefully. With inputs from agencies
