India-Pak de-escalation 'bigger success than i'll get credit for': Trump

Business Standard

17-05-2025

Trump said his intervention during India-Pakistan tensions helped avert a nuclear conflict, calling it a major success he believes he'll never be credited for
Nandini Singh New Delhi
US President Donald Trump has once again claimed credit for de-escalating high military tensions between India and Pakistan, saying his intervention averted what could have become a nuclear conflict between the two nations.
Speaking to Fox News on Friday, Trump described the situation as one of his most significant foreign policy achievements—one that, he said, would never be fully acknowledged.
'A bigger success than I'll ever be given credit for. Those are major nuclear powers. Those are not like a little bit, and they were angry,' Trump said in the interview.
When asked about his involvement in diffusing tensions before a planned trip to the Middle East, Trump confirmed that he had picked up the phone and spoken with both India and Pakistan during the crisis.
He went on to describe the dangerous trajectory of the conflict at the time.
'And the next phase was probably—did you see where it was getting? It was tit for tat. It was getting deeper and more… more missiles, everyone was stronger, stronger. So to a point where the next one's going to be, you know what? The N word. You know the N word is, right?' Trump said, referring to 'nuclear.'
'It's the N word. That's a very nasty word, right? In a lot of ways. The N word used in a nuclear sense—that's the worst thing that can happen. And I think they were very close. The hatred was great," he said.
Trump further said that he used trade negotiations as a tool to calm tensions.
'I said, we're going to talk about trade. We're going to do a lot of trade,' he added.
The US President also claimed that India was willing to significantly reduce its high tariffs on American goods, as part of a broader effort to improve bilateral relations.
'India—they're one of the highest tariff nations in the world. They make it almost impossible to do business. Do you know that they're willing to cut 100 per cent of their tariffs for the United States?' Trump claimed.
However, there has been no official confirmation from India regarding such tariff concessions.
When asked if a trade deal with India was on the horizon, Trump responded: "Yeah, that'll come soon. I'm in no rush. Look, everybody wants to make a deal with us. South Korea wants to make a deal. But I'm not going to make deals with everybody. I'm just going to set the limit. I'll make some deals because I can—you can't meet with that many people. I've got 150 countries that want to make deals.'
India-Pakistan conflict
The tensions between the two nations began after the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, in which 26 people were killed. In retaliation, India launched 'Operation Sindoor' on May 7, targeting terror infrastructure across the border.
Pakistan responded and attempted to attack on Indian military bases on May 8, 9, and 10, triggering a series of fierce counterattacks by Indian forces on Pakistani military installations.
After four days of intense cross-border drone and missile exchanges, India and Pakistan reportedly reached a mutual understanding on May 10 to halt hostilities.
That same day, President Trump announced that both countries had agreed to a full and immediate ceasefire, following what he described as a long night of mediation efforts led by Washington.