US President Donald Trump, during his State of the Union address on 25 February 2026, asserted that he averted a nuclear war between India and Pakistan in May 2025. He claimed that Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif informed him 35 million people would have perished without his intervention, and that Sharif himself was at grave risk.
The remarks echoed Trump’s prior statements on the crisis, where he credited threats of 250 per cent tariffs on both nations for enforcing a ceasefire after just two days of pressure. Trump framed this as part of ending eight wars in his first ten months in office, portraying himself as a pivotal global peacemaker.
Tensions stemmed from the Pahalgam terror attack on 22 April 2025, in Jammu and Kashmir’s Baisaran Valley, where militants killed 26 people—mostly Hindu tourists from various Indian states, plus a Nepali citizen and a local Muslim. Armed with M4 carbines and AK-47s, the attackers targeted civilians in one of the deadliest strikes since the 2008 Mumbai attacks.
India responded decisively with Operation Sindoor on the night of 6-7 May 2025, launching tri-services strikes from its own territory against nine terror sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Targets included camps and launch pads of Jaish-e-Mohammed, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and Hizbul Mujahideen in locations such as Bahawalpur, Muridke, Muzaffarabad, and Kotli.
Pakistan retaliated with drone incursions into Indian airspace across 36 locations and heavy weapons fire along the Line of Control, killing 16 civilians in Jammu and Kashmir.
India countered by neutralising Pakistan’s HQ-9 air defence system, maintaining its actions were precise and non-escalatory, focused solely on terrorist infrastructure.
The skirmishes lasted four days, culminating in a ceasefire on 10 May 2025, agreed via direct hotline communication between the Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) of India and Pakistan. Both sides reported normalcy resuming, with commercial flights restarting shortly after.
India has consistently rejected Trump’s mediation claims, with officials emphasising sovereign decision-making and direct bilateral military channels at Pakistan’s request. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri clarified no third-party role existed, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally informed Trump of this during talks.
New Delhi views such assertions as misinformation, underscoring its rejection of external intervention in South Asian disputes. Critics in the US and elsewhere question the veracity of Trump’s narrative, noting no independent evidence supports his direct involvement in the ceasefire.
Trump’s tariff threats did lead to subsequent trade measures, including up to 50 per cent duties on Indian goods amid ongoing negotiations, partly linked to India’s Russian oil purchases. This has strained US-India ties, though broader strategic partnerships persist.
Pakistan has not officially corroborated Trump’s specific claims about Sharif’s statements or peril, though the ceasefire aligned with its requests to de-escalate. The episode highlights enduring Indo-Pak rivalries, amplified by nuclear capabilities on both sides.
Trump’s repeated emphasis in speeches, including this SOTU, serves domestic political ends, bolstering his image on foreign policy amid tariff and immigration debates. Indian analysts see it as characteristic hyperbole, detached from on-ground realities.
The 2025 crisis underscored India’s evolving deterrence posture, blending surgical strikes with indigenous capabilities against cross-border terrorism. It also exposed vulnerabilities in regional stability, prompting global vigilance over nuclear thresholds.
As of February 2026, the ceasefire holds without major violations, though sporadic LoC incidents persist. Trump’s narrative continues to fuel diplomatic discourse, contrasting sharply with India’s firm non-mediation stance.
Agencies
