‘When it came to losing a lot of money…’: Trump says India-Pakistan only stopped war when billions were at stake | World News

Washington: US President Donald Trump repeated his claims that he played a role in halting military tensions between India and Pakistan by threatening harsh trade penalties last year. Speaking at inaugural session of the ‘Board of Peace’ in Washington on Thursday (February 19), he described how he warned both New Delhi and Islamabad of steep tariffs if they did not bring hostilities to an end.

He said the fighting was intense and warplanes were “shot down” during the conflict. He claimed that he personally called both leaders – Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Pakistani counterpart Shehbaz Sharif – and that their warnings about tariffs and trade consequences convinced them to de-escalate tensions. He added that he already knows them to some extent and is especially familiar with PM Modi.

He said he was threatening to impose high tariffs of up to 200 percent on both countries in May 2025 as part of a strategy to prevent further escalation of tensions between the two countries. “I called them and said, ‘Listen, if you don’t solve this problem, I’m not going to make a trade deal with you two.'”

He claimed that economic pressure, rather than military talks, was the decisive factor in ending the short-lived conflict between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.

“And suddenly we came to an agreement. So I said, ‘If you fight, I’ll put a 200 percent tariff on each of your countries.’ They both wanted to fight. But when it comes to money, there’s nothing like money. When it came to losing a lot of money, I guess they said we don’t want to fight… 11 jets were shot down. Very expensive jets.”

At the same event, the US president said he expressed gratitude to Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s team, saying Trump intervened in the situation and “saved 25 million lives.”

Trump has repeated this narrative repeatedly in recent months, citing similar tariff threats in remarks to reporters and in public forums. He has repeatedly suggested that punitive trade measures are being used to end not only this conflict but other global tensions as well.

New Delhi has consistently rejected claims that any third party brokered the ceasefire or played a role in de-escalating tensions. The government maintained that the decision to end hostilities was taken directly by the military leaders of India and Pakistan after several days of intense ground and air fighting. There has been no official confirmation from either New Delhi or Islamabad supporting Trump’s version of the incident.

Analysts said Trump’s repeated claims were intended to highlight his use of economic power as a foreign policy tool, especially at a time before domestic political strife when his rhetoric often emphasized strong leadership on international issues.

Trump’s statements come as the United States supports the ‘Peace Board’ initiative, a new forum launched in Washington that brings together world leaders and representatives on conflict resolution issues.

During the launch event, Trump also mentioned US diplomatic involvement, but critics questioned some of the claims and noted the lack of independent verification.