By Anjali Sharma
WASHINGTON – US president Donald Trump on Wednesday has once again claimed that he helped prevent a nuclear confrontation between India and Pakistan in May after the Pahalgam terror attack threatened to impose ”high tariffs” and stop trade deals with both countries unless they agreed to end hostilities.
His fresh remarks came during a cabinet meeting at the White House.
US administration has decided to raise the issue of tariffs on Indian imports, with an additional 25 per cent duty for purchasing Russian oil, which took effect on Wednesday.
The decision will push the overall tariffs to 50 per cent on Indian goods entering the US.
Trump called Prime Minister Narendra Modi “a very terrific man” during the cabinet meeting at the White House and claimed that he had a conversation with the Indian leader.
He also warned Pakistan that continued hostilities would block trade deals.
“I’m talking to a very terrific man, Modi of India. I said, what’s going on with you and Pakistan? Then I spoke to Pakistan about trade. I said, what’s going on with you and India? This has been going on for a hell of a long time, sometimes under different names for hundreds of years,” he said.
“But I said, what’s going on? I said I don’t want to make a trade deal…. I said, no, no, I don’t want to make a trade deal with you. You’re going to have a nuclear war. You guys are going to end up in a nuclear war. And that was very important to them. I said, call me back tomorrow, but we’re not going to do any deals with you, or we’re going to put tariffs on you that are so high. I don’t give a damn. Your head’s going to spin. You’re not going to end up in a war. Within about five hours, it was done. It was done. Now maybe it starts again, I don’t know. I don’t think so. But I’ll stop it if it does. We can’t let these things happen,” he added.
India has denied that Trump mediated the ceasefire and PM Modi told him so in a phone call in June.
India said Pakistan’s Director General of Military Operations Major General Kashif Abdullah called India’s DGMO Lt Gen Rajiv Ghai, offered a truce.
