‘Eight wars resolved’, Trump now eyes ninth: Pakistan vs Afghanistan

US President Donald Trump has said yet again that he is "good at solving wars", and has now turned his attention to the escalating conflict between Afghanistan and Pakistan, asserting at the same time that he is not seeking a Nobel Prize for his peace efforts.

Trump made the remarks on Sunday (October 12), before departing for Israel, where he is set to oversee progress in the ongoing hostage exchange between Israel and Hamas after brokering a ceasefire in Gaza.

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Speaking aboard Air Force One, en route to the Middle East, Trump reiterated his long-standing claim that tariff threats helped avert a potential war between India and Pakistan. He stressed that his diplomacy was aimed at saving lives, not to win any awards.

Trump declared that the Gaza war had ended, calling the Israel-Hamas ceasefire the "eighth war" resolved during his presidency.

He said his visits to Israel and Egypt — his first since brokering the truce — would focus on consolidating the ceasefire, supporting reconstruction in Gaza, and building on the fragile momentum toward regional peace.

The president said he believed there is a "narrow window" to reshape the Middle East and heal divisions between Israel and its Arab neighbours. "This is the time to build something lasting," he remarked before leaving Washington.

Trump aims at solving Pakistan-Afghanistan clashes

Boasting of his "record" in mediating conflicts, Trump claimed his administration had resolved several global disputes.

"This will be my eighth war that I have solved," he said. "And I hear there is a war now between Pakistan and Afghanistan. I said, I’ll have to wait till I get back — I’m doing another one. Because I’m good at solving wars."

His comments came amid escalating clashes along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, where heavy overnight fighting was reported. Taliban forces reportedly retaliated after Pakistani airstrikes in Kabul, as tensions continue to flare up between the nations.

Afghan officials said 58 Pakistani soldiers were killed in counterattacks, while Pakistan’s army reported 23 casualties, according to the Associated Press. Pakistani officials also reportedly claimed their forces had seized about nineteen Afghan posts along the border.

Before boarding Air Force One, Trump suggested he could take up the Pakistan-Afghanistan conflict after returning from the Middle East.

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Trump repeats claim on tariff threat and Indo-Pak conflict

He also cited previous conflicts he claimed to have helped resolve. "Think about India and Pakistan, think about some of the wars that were going on for years. We had one going for 31, one for 32, one for 37 years, with millions of people being killed in every country, and I got every one of those done, for the most part, within a day. It’s pretty good," he said.

Trump argued that his peace initiatives had saved “millions of lives,” adding, "It’s an honour to do it. I saved millions of lives. In all fairness to the Nobel Committee, it was for 2024, but there are those who say you could make an exception because a lot of things happened in 2025 that are done and complete and great. But I did not do this for the Nobel. I did this for saving lives."

The president added that economic leverage, rather than diplomacy, had been his main tool in preventing war between India and Pakistan. “I settled a few wars just with tariffs,” he said.

"Between India and Pakistan, I said, if you guys want to fight a war and you have nuclear weapons, I am going to put big tariffs on you both — 100 per cent, 150 per cent, 200 per cent. I said I am putting tariffs, and I had that thing settled in 24 hours. If I didn’t have tariffs, you could have never settled that war."