WASHINGTON: Former US President Donald Trump has stated that he personally intervened to prevent military conflict between India and Pakistan, using trade as a key point of leverage.
Speaking during a Diwali event, Mr. Trump revealed he had recently spoken with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He described their conversation as positive, covering topics like trade and, notably, the importance of avoiding war with Pakistan.
“I told them, ‘let’s have no wars with Pakistan’,” Mr. Trump told reporters. He credited the influence of trade discussions as a tool for de-escalation, adding, “And we have no war with Pakistan and India. That was a very, very good thing.”
Expanding on his claim, the former president said this was part of a broader record of preventing international conflicts. He asserted he had stopped eight wars through “deals and trade.”
To illustrate his point, he recounted a specific incident of heightened tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. “During the Pakistan-India conflict, seven planes were shot down,” Mr. Trump claimed. He said that after he contacted both nations and warned that the US would halt all trade if they proceeded to war, they called back within a day and stepped back from the brink.
Also read: Rahul Gandhi: “Modi fears Trump,” that’s why India halted Russian oil
Recently the Indian National Congress leader Rahul Ghandi has criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi following reports that India will cease purchasing Russian oil, accusing him of capitulating to American pressure.
The controversy emerged after US President Donald Trump, addressing the media in the Oval Office, stated that Mr Modi had given him assurances that India would stop buying oil from Russia. While White House officials later told Reuters news agency that India had reduced its oil purchases from Russia by 50 percent, they provided no further details on a complete future cessation.
Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi led the attack, posting on social media that the Prime Minister was acting out of apprehension towards the US President. “Modi fears Trump,”” Mr Gandhi wrote, alleging that the Indian leader had allowed President Trump to unilaterally announce the policy shift.
