WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump has claimed that at least five fighter jets were shot down during the latest round of hostilities between India and Pakistan in May, and insisted that it was the United States that “stopped the war” between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.
“Planes were being shot out of the air ... I think five jets were shot down, actually,” Trump said during a dinner meeting with Republican lawmakers at the White House on Friday night. He did not clarify whether the jets were Indian or Pakistani.
This marks the first time a head of state from a third country has confirmed the downing of jets in the four-day conflict that erupted in early May.
The fighting followed the April 22 bombing at the Pahalgam tourist resort in Indian-administered Kashmir, which New Delhi blamed on Pakistan. Islamabad denied the accusation and called for a neutral probe.
Pakistan has claimed responsibility for shooting down six Indian aircraft, including three French-made Rafale fighter jets, during India's cross-border airstrikes on May 7.
India has not confirmed those figures, though Gen. Anil Chauhan, India's chief of defense staff, later acknowledged that some aircraft were lost. “What is important is not the jet being down, but why they were down,” Chauhan said at the time.
Trump said the escalation was “getting bigger and bigger,” but was ultimately “solved through trade,” describing how Washington leveraged ongoing trade negotiations to pressure both sides into restraint.
“We said, you guys want to make a trade deal. We're not making a trade deal if you're going to be throwing around weapons, and maybe nuclear weapons—both very powerful nuclear states,” Trump said.
“We stopped a lot of wars. And these were serious,” he added, referencing repeated claims he has made about U.S. mediation efforts in South Asia.
The May conflict marked one of the most dangerous flare-ups between India and Pakistan in recent years, with cross-border strikes, high-altitude dogfights, and mounting fears of a broader military confrontation. — Agencies
