US President Donald Trump on Wednesday misspoke during is State Of The Union address and said that the Pakistan Prime Minister would have died during the India-Pakistan conflict. While reiterating his claim that his intervention prevented major geopolitical conflicts, he spoke about the recent India-Pakistan conflict.
"In my first 10 months, I ended eight wars... Pakistan and India would have had a nuclear war. 35 million people said the Prime Minister of Pakistan would have died if it were not for my involvement," Trump said.
In all likelihood, Trump meant that his intervention helped saved 35 million lives and the Pakistan Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif, credited him for that.
This is not the first time Trump has made the 'saving the 35 million' claim. Over the past week, he has repeatedly referred to his role in defusing tensions between New Delhi and Islamabad, often linking the breakthrough to his tariff-based diplomatic strategy.
Just days earlier, on Feb 20, Trump said, "The Prime Minister of Pakistan said that President Trump could have saved 35 million lives by getting us to stop fighting. They were getting ready to do some bad things. But these tariffs have given us great national security."
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Despite the dramatic statements, neither government has publicly confirmed the figures cited by Trump.
India has consistently denied any third-party intervention in resolving the conflict with Pakistan. India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7 last year, targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in retaliation for the April 22 Pahalgam attack that killed 26 civilians.
India has been maintaining that the understanding on cessation of hostilities with Pakistan was reached following direct talks between the Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) of the two militaries.
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