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US President Donald Trump on Sunday once again claimed to have brokered a ceasefire between India and Pakistan after days of deadly clashes in May this year. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said, “I got it done (ceasefire). There are others. If you look at India and Pakistan. I could say almost any one of the deals that I’ve already done I thought would have been more difficult than Russia and Ukraine, but it didn’t work out that way.” Although the Indian government has consistently rejected any third-party involvement in the ceasefire process with Pakistan, Trump has repeatedly made such claims in recent months. The US President made the remarks in response to a question about the possibility of rescheduling a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, which had earlier been postponed indefinitely, news agency ANI reported. Trump further stated that Putin had commended him for his role in helping achieve peace in other regions, including between Azerbaijan and Armenia. He added that despite those successes, resolving the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict remains the most difficult challenge. “I’m going to have to know that we’re going to have a deal (with Putin). I’m not going to be wasting my time. I’ve always had a very great relationship with Vladimir Putin, but this has been very disappointing. I thought this would have gotten done before peace in the Middle East. We have Azerbaijan, Armenia – that was very tough. In fact, Putin told me on the phone he said, ‘Boy, that was amazing’ because everybody tried to get that done and they couldn’t,” Trump mentioned. On Sunday, Trump arrived in Malaysia to attend the upcoming ASEAN summit. Earlier, he stopped at the Al-Udeid Air Base in Doha, Qatar, where he welcomed Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Qatar’s Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani aboard the plane, ANI report mentioned. During the press gaggle, Trump expressed confidence in achieving lasting peace in the Middle East, while warning Hamas of serious consequences if the ceasefire agreement with Israel is violated. “I think it (ceasefire) will hold. Well, if it doesn’t hold, it’s Hamas. Hamas will not be hard to deal with very quickly. I hope it holds for Hamas too because they gave us their world on something, so I think it’s going to hold, and if it doesn’t, then they’ll have a very big problem,” he said. Trump On Three-Nation Visit The US President is on a three-nation visit, during which, after Malaysia, he is set to visit Japan and South Korea. While in Kuala Lumpur for the summit, President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping will hold talks to prevent an escalation of their trade war. The threatened tariffs and other trade curbs would take effect on November 1 in retaliation for China’s expanded export controls on rare-earth magnets and minerals. Recent actions include an expanded US export blacklist covering thousands more Chinese firms. Through engagement with Asian leaders, Trump aims to negotiate favourable trade agreements, reduce tariffs, and boost US exports, with his return to Asia potentially redefining regional trade and diplomacy.
