Trump takes credit for Indo-Pak ceasefire again, blasted by his ex-NSA

Donald Trump has once again claimed credit for the recent ceasefire between India and Pakistan.

This is the second time Trump has claimed that he prevented a rapidly escalating war, saying he “stopped it through trade”.

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This claim was rejected vehemently by Indian officials and the Ministry of External Affairs, who assured that Kashmir was a bilateral issue, only between India and Pakistan.

In fact, Trump’s own former National Security Advisor (NSA) John Bolton also criticised him, saying that ‘he likes to hog the spotlight’.

‘Settled it through trade’

"If you take a look at what we just did with Pakistan and India — we settled that whole thing," Trump declared at a joint press conference with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.

"I think I settled it through trade. We’re doing a big deal with India. We’re doing a big deal with Pakistan."

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Even before India and Pakistan officially revealed the ceasefire agreement, Trump had posted on Truth Social, "After a long night of talks mediated by the United States, I am pleased to announce that India and Pakistan have agreed to a full and immediate ceasefire. Congratulations to both countries on using common sense and great intelligence. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"

Kashmir a bilateral issue

The US President has been asserting everywhere that it was he who not only simply 'brokered' the India-Pakistan ceasefire, but also prevented a 'nuclear war'.

But Indian officials from the MEA explicitly said that the Kashmir issue was a ‘bilateral matter’, and therefore can only be handled between India and Pakistan.

They also assured that Washington DC had no part in brokering the agreement, not was trade a discussion.

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“As you are aware, we have a long-standing national position that any issues pertaining to the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir have to be addressed by India and Pakistan bilaterally. That stated policy has not changed. As you are aware, the outstanding matter is the vacation of illegally occupied Indian territory by Pakistan,” the MEA said.

Trade not discussed

MEA officials stated clearly that Trade was not a topic that was discussed between Indian and US leaders during or after ‘Operation Sindoor’.

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“From the time Operation Sindoor commenced on 7th May till the understanding on cessation of firing and military action on 10th May, there were conversations between Indian and US leaders on the evolving military situation. The issue of trade did not come up in any of these discussions.”

John Bolton blasts Trump

Trunp’s hasty announcements were blasted by his former-NSA John Bolton, who said “Trump takes credit for everything”.

He called it his typical behaviour and summed up what he thought as Trump rushing to the spotlight before others, without the necessary facts to back him.

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Bolton, known for not sugarcoating his words, said, "I think he did have a call with Prime Minister Modi, and Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio were also on the call. I'm sure other countries might also be calling to see what they can do. It's typical of Trump because he would jump in before everyone else could take credit. It may be irritating, probably is irritating to many people, but it's nothing against India, it's just Trump being Trump," he added.

Who is John Bolton?

John Bolton was the National Security Advisor to the Trump administration from April 2018 to September 2019, and played an integral role in Trump withdrawing the US from the Iran Nuclear deal.

He was let go by the Trump Administration after several ‘disagreements’ with President Trump himself.

Also read: Trump says he convinced India, Pak to ‘let’s have peace, go make trade deals’

He went on to write a best-selling book on his experience during the Trump Administration, titled, ‘The Room where it happened’, released in 2020.

Operation Sindoor and aftermath

In the aftermath of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack which killed 26 civilians, India’s massive retaliatory offensive — dubbed Operation Sindoor — targeted nine terror camps across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

After several failed retaliatory attacks by Pakistan, and Indian armed forces hitting many sites of Pakistani military infrastructure, a ceasefire agreement was signed between the two sparring nations, to stop any cross-border hostilities. But this was soon broken by Pakistani shelling into Indian territories.

(With agency inputs)