Tag: Donald Trump

US President Donald Trump has claimed that Pakistan is among a few countries conducting nuclear tests, saying he does not want America to be the only nation that does not.

Speaking on CBS’s 60 Minutes, Trump said, “North Korea is testing, Pakistan is testing, but they don’t tell you about it.” The remark came when he was asked about his recent directive to the Pentagon to resume nuclear weapons testing.

Trump had recently posted on social media that he instructed the Department of Defense to “immediately” restart nuclear testing. His statement sparked confusion over whether he planned to authorize America’s first nuclear detonation since 1992.

When asked about it, Trump said, “We have more nuclear weapons than any country. I think we should do something about disarmament. I’ve spoken to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping about it.”

He continued, “We have enough nuclear weapons to destroy the world 150 times. Russia has many, and China likely does too.”

When the interviewer asked why the US needed to test its weapons, Trump replied, “Because you have to see how they work. Russia announced it would test. North Korea keeps testing. Other countries are doing it. We are the only country that doesn’t. I don’t want us to be the only one not doing it.”

The host pointed out that apart from North Korea, no country is conducting nuclear tests, as Russia and China have not tested since the 1990s. Trump disagreed, saying, “Russia and China do it, you just don’t know. They do underground testing where no one can detect it.”

He added, “We are an open society. We talk about it. In Russia or China, there are no reporters to cover such things. You report it here, that’s why people know.”

Trump said the US must continue testing. “We need to test our weapons; otherwise, we don’t know if they work. North Korea does it. Pakistan does it. They don’t tell you. They do it deep underground where no one knows. You just feel a little tremor.”

He added that while he doesn’t want to use nuclear weapons, the US must remain prepared. “We don’t want to use them, but we have to make sure they work.”

Pakistan has not yet commented on Trump’s remarks.

United States President Donald Trump has said that he urged Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to avoid a war with Pakistan. The President was addressing a group of Indian nationals during a Diwali event in the Oval Office in Washington DC. 

While speaking to reporters, Trump said he had a detailed telephone conversation with Modi earlier in the day, during which they discussed several important issues, including trade. 

“We talked about a lot of things, but mostly the world of trade,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. “I told him that war with Pakistan should not happen,” he added, emphasizing that he believed “issues can be resolved through trade.”

“I just spoke to your Prime Minister today,” Trump told attendees at the Oval Office. “We had a great conversation. We talked about trade … Although we did talk a little while ago about let’s have no wars with Pakistan. And I think the fact that trade was involved, I was able to talk about that. And we have no war with Pakistan and India. That was a very, very good thing.”

Nuclear-armed India and Pakistan reached an understanding on May 10 to halt all military actions on land, in the air and at sea, in a ceasefire announced by Trump, under which both sides agreed not to escalate hostilities that had spiraled alarmingly in a brief but intense conflict threatening regional peace. 

The two neighbors had exchanged fire using fighter jets, drones, missiles, and artillery in their worst fighting in decades, leaving around 70 people dead on both sides of the border.

Trump has since taken credit for ending the conflict, though New Delhi has disputed the involvement of any third party, maintaining that India continues to deal with Pakistan bilaterally.

The US president also claimed he had prevented eight wars so far through what he described as “deals and trade,” includingthe one between Pakistan and India.

Last week, Trump said at a White House dinner that Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had recently met him and “emotionally” credited him in front of a group of people for stopping multiple wars, saying millions of lives could have been lost in the conflicts.

President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States (US) is seeking to take back Bagram air base, located in Afghanistan.

The Soviet-era airstrip served as the primary base for US forces in Afghanistan from shortly after the September 11, 2001, attacks at the World Trade Centre until their withdrawal in August 2021.

The US military death toll in the Afghan war since 2001 was about 2,500. Soon after the US pullout, Taliban fighters regained control of Kabul in August 2021.

During a joint news conference with British Prime Minister (PM) Keir Starmer at Chequers in London, President Trump said, “One of the biggest airbases in the world. We gave it to them for nothing. We’re trying to get it back, by the way.”

“We’re trying to get it back because they need things from us. We want that base back. But one of the reasons we want the base is, as you know, it’s an hour away from where China makes its nuclear weapons,” he added.

Criticising his predecessor, Democrat President Joe Biden, over the tumultuous US withdrawal from Afghanistan during his era, President Trump claimed that it left American weapons and other military assets, including bases, in the hands of the Taliban.

Meanwhile, regarding the Ukraine-Russia conflict, he said that he had thought the Ukraine war would be solved “within days” of his entering the White House.

“The one that I thought would be easiest … because of my relationship with President Putin, but he’s let me down. He’s really let me down … I thought it might be among the easiest of the group,” President Trump lamented.

When pressed to tell whether he is ready to impose additional sanctions on Russia, President Trump claimed that Europe needed to take action first to end oil purchases from Russia.

“If the price of oil comes down, Putin’s going to drop out. He’s going to have no choice,” he said, adding, “I’m willing to do other things, but not when the people that I’m fighting for are buying oil from Russia.”

United States (US) President Donald Trump stated on Monday that seven jets were shot down during the Pakistan-India conflict in May this year. 

Speaking at a White House press briefing, he again claimed credit for preventing what he described as a potential nuclear conflict between India and Pakistan in May.

His statement appears to be in line with Pakistani claims of shooting down six Indian jets on the very first night of the conflict, dealing a huge blow to the Indian Air Force (IAF). India has never explicitly addressed the fact that it lost jets, including Rafales, despite several media reports validifying that Pakistan did successfully shoot down multiple jets. 

Following the April 22 Pahalgam incident in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), New Delhi launched strikes in Pakistan, leading the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) to shoot down Indian Air Force (IAF) fighter jets, including French-made Rafales, on the night of May 6–7.

During a press conference on May 11, Indian Air Marshal AK Bharti, without disclosing the number of downed Rafales, admitted that “losses are part of combat,” implying irreparable damage to their air force.

President Trump said the situation in South Asia was “raging” when fighter jets were shot down during the brief war. “The war with India and Pakistan was the next level that was going to be a nuclear war… They already shot down seven jets,” he stated. 

He claimed that he told both countries that if they keep fighting, “we are not doing any trade or anything with you”. “You’ve got 24 hours to settle it. They said, ‘Well, there’s no more war going on’,” he added.

President Trump stated that his use of tariffs and trade pressure was decisive, adding, “I had tariffs and trade, and I was able to say, ‘If you go fight and want to kill everybody, that is okay, but I am going to charge you each a 100 per cent tariff when you trade with us’. They all gave up.”

Since the conflict between Pakistan and India, he has repeatedly claimed that he brokered a ceasefire on May 10, a claim acknowledged by Islamabad but denied by New Delhi.

Indian Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi dodged an invitation from United States (US) President Donald Trump to visit the White House in June, wary that the latter would set up a meeting with the Pakistani Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir, Bloomberg reported on Friday.

The meeting between the COAS and the US president took place on June 18 at the White House over lunch, and following the meeting, Trump said that he was “honoured” to meet the General. 

The Indian premier was reportedly returning from Canada after attending the G7 summit when he was invited to visit the White House, an invitation Modi had refused citing his scheduled visit to Croatia.

Quoting officials in New Delhi, the outlet reported that tensions between the two countries intensified following a 35-minute phone call between the US president and Modi that took place on June 17.

During the call, Trump repeatedly claimed credit for the ceasefire brokered by the US between Pakistan and India on May 10; however, India downplayed the matter.

After the ceasefire, Islamabad extended thanks to Trump, acknowledging his role in brokering the ceasefire between the two countries. Later, Islamabad also nominated President Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Conversely, India objected to Trump’s role in the cessation of hostilities between two countries that erupted after New Delhi launched illegitimate strikes on the night of May 6-7, targeting civilians in Pakistan in response to the April 22 Pahalgam militant attack in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK) that killed 26 civilians.

The relationship between New Delhi and Washington, DC appears to have nosedived after Trump imposed an additional 25 percent tariff on Indian goods in the US, bringing the total to 50 percent.

In an executive order issued from the White House, Trump said, “I find that the Government of India is currently directly or indirectly importing Russian Federation oil.”

“Accordingly, and as consistent with applicable law, articles of India imported into the customs territory of the United States shall be subject to an additional ad valorem rate of duty of 25pc.”

In a statement issued on X (formerly Twitter), later in the day, India declared Trump’s decision “extremely unfortunate”, adding that New Delhi would take all actions necessary to protect its national interests. 

“We reiterate that these actions are unfair, unjustified and unreasonable,” it said.