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New Delhi: United States President Donald Trump on Wednesday said that the US was “doing a trade deal” with India and once again claimed that he had stopped the India-Pakistan conflict in May this year by threatening to impose a 250 per cent tariff on both countries if they did not end hostilities. He also praised the leaders of both nations.The US President has made this claim multiple times over the past five and a half months, asserting that his administration brokered a ceasefire between India and Pakistan through trade pressure tactics, a claim India has repeatedly refuted at the highest levels.Speaking at a luncheon for Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) business leaders in the South Korean city of Gyeongju, President Trump was quoted as saying, “Two nuclear nations were fighting with each other. They said, ‘No, no, no, you should let us fight.’ They are strong people. Prime Minister Modi is the nicest-looking guy. He is a killer. He is tough as hell. But after a little while, they called up and said they would end fighting.”He continued, “I am doing a trade deal with India, and I have love and great respect for Prime Minister Modi. Likewise, the Prime Minister of Pakistan is a great guy, and his Field Marshal is a great fighter. I called Prime Minister Modi and said we can’t make a trade deal with you while you are fighting with Pakistan. Then I called Pakistan and said the same thing. I told them I was going to put 250 per cent tariffs on each country, which means you’ll never do business. There’s nothing you can sell for 250 per cent.”President Trump added, “That’s a nice way of saying, ‘We don’t want to do business with you.’ You don’t have to say it directly, that would sound nasty. They understood, and within 48 hours we had no war, no casualties. It makes me feel so good, we saved millions of lives.”President Trump had called Prime Minister Modi a week ago to convey Diwali greetings, later telling reporters that India was already cutting back on purchases of Russian oil. He said he also hoped during the call that there would be no war between India and Pakistan.In August, the US President imposed 50 per cent tariffs on India, half of which, he claimed, was a penalty for importing Russian oil.According to reports, President Trump has called Modi several times since last month to “break the ice.” Earlier, during a 35-minute phone call in June, initiated by Trump while Modi was in Canada for the G7 Summit, the Indian leader had reportedly set the record straight, clarifying that at no stage during Operation Sindoor in May did India and the United States discuss bilateral trade or any form of American mediation between India and Pakistan.
