Washington: US President Donald Trump has asserted that his administration played a crucial role in brokering an immediate cessation of hostilities between India and Pakistan, following escalating tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. He said, "We stopped a nuclear conflict. I think it could have been a bad nuclear war. Millions of people could have been killed. I also want to thank VP JD Vance and Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, for their work..." Speaking to the media in a press briefing at the White House, Trump emphasised the significant impact of US diplomatic efforts in facilitating the truce, stating, "On Saturday, my administration helped broker an immediate cessation of hostilities, I think a permanent one between India and Pakistan - the countries having a lot of nuclear weapons." Trump further elaborated on the influence of trade in securing the cessation of hostilities, explaining his approach to the two countries. "I'm very proud to let you know that the leadership of India and Pakistan was unwavering and powerful... And we helped a lot, and we also helped with trade. I said, 'Come on, we're going to do a lot of trade with you guys. Let's stop it, let's stop it. If you stop it, we're doing trade. If you don't stop it, we're not going to do any trade,'" Trump stated, highlighting his administration's use of trade leverage to encourage peace. The cessation of hostilities between India and Pakistan was reportedly agreed upon following a call from Pakistan's Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) to his Indian counterpart, Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai. During the conversation, the Pakistani DGMO proposed an end to hostilities, which was accepted by the Indian side, leading to a cessation of cross-border firing and air intrusions starting from 5:00 pm on May 10. However, Lieutenant General Ghai later disclosed that the cessation of hostilities was short-lived, as Pakistan violated the agreement with cross-border firing and drone intrusions just hours after it took effect. The conflict had initially intensified after the Indian Armed Forces launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting nine terrorist infrastructure sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoK). This operation was a direct response to the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, which resulted in the death of 26 civilians, including one Nepali national. The Indian military's retaliatory strikes were followed by increased cross-border shelling from Pakistan and a series of counter-responses by the Indian Armed Forces.
