'200% tariffs...11 jets down': Trump's new twist on India-Pakistan ceasefire
What's the story
United States President Donald Trump has made a bolder claim that he played a key role in de-escalating the India-Pakistan conflict last year. He said he threatened both countries with "200% tariffs," which led to a ceasefire. The US leader also alleged that 11 "very expensive" fighter jets were shot down during the hostilities, a claim India has strongly denied.
Diplomatic intervention
Trump claims he threatened trade sanctions
Speaking at a Board of Peace event, Trump claimed that the confrontation had reached a dangerous point before he intervened. "That war was raging....11 jets were shot down. Very expensive jets. And I got on the phone with both of them (Narendra Modi and Shehbaz Sharif)...I called them and I said, listen, I'm not doing trade deals with you two guys if you don't settle this up. And all of a sudden, we worked out a deal," he said.
Trump
'But when it came to money...'
The US president claimed that he told them, "I said, if you (India and Pakistan) fight, I am going to put 200 percent tariffs on each of your countries. They both wanted to fight. But when it came to money, it's nothing like money." "When it came to losing a lot of money, they said, I guess we don't want to fight," he said.
Sharif
Sharif said i saved 25M lives
Trump also said that after he intervened, Sharif, who attended the Board of Peace, publicly credited him with saving "25 million lives" by intervening at a critical moment. "He (Pakistani PM) said in front of our Chief of Staff that President Trump saved 25 million lives when he stopped the war between us and India. That war was raging," he said.
Ceasefire details
India rejected Trump's claims of mediation
India has repeatedly rejected Trump's claims of his mediation in the conflict, asserting that the ceasefire was achieved bilaterally through Director Generals of Military Operations (DGMOs). This is not the first time Trump has claimed credit for defusing tensions between India and Pakistan. Trump has claimed credit for stopping the India-Pakistan conflict over 80 times since May 10 last year. India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7 last year after Pakistan-based terrorists killed 26 civilians in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam.