Washington/New Delhi: US President Donald Trump has once again asserted that his intervention helped avert a potential India-Pakistan conflict in 2025, claiming millions of lives were at stake.
Speaking during his State of the Union address on Tuesday, Trump said Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif told him that nearly 35 million people could have died if he had not stepped in during the tensions linked to Operation Sindoor.
“In my first 10 months, I ended eight wars… Pakistan and India would have had a nuclear war. Thirty-five million people, the Prime Minister of Pakistan said, would have died if it were not for my involvement,” Trump said, according to ANI.
PAK WAS FEELING THE HEAT. OP SINDOOR REVELATION BY TRUMP.
In State of Union Address Trump speaks on India-Pakistan:
35 million people said the Prime Minister of Pakistan would have died if it were not for my involvement. pic.twitter.com/SMOWMSk0tq— Rahul Shivshankar (@RShivshankar) February 25, 2026
India Firmly Rejects Claim
New Delhi has consistently dismissed Trump’s assertion, reiterating that the de-escalation between India and Pakistan was achieved without any third-party mediation.
Background: Operation Sindoor
India launched Operation Sindoor following the deadly Pahalgam terror attack, which killed 26 civilians. During the operation, Indian Armed Forces conducted precision strikes on terror infrastructure in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
Officials said nine terrorist camps—described as key training hubs—were destroyed within about 25 minutes of the operation.
