At Riyadh summit, Trump claims credit for peace efforts between India and Pakistan, proposes a symbolic dinner to defuse tensions, draws sharp criticism in India for meddling in Kashmir affairs again
Riyadh: In yet another provocative diplomatic comment, former US President Donald Trump, who described himself as a “peacemaker,” has stirred controversy by suggesting that India and Pakistan “should have a dinner” to defuse the decades-old conflict between the nuclear-armed neighbours.
Trump made this statement at the US-Saudi Investment Forum in Riyadh, attended by an influential gathering of global leaders, including Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Tesla CEO Elon Musk, US Defence Secretary Marco Rubio, and Vice President J.D. Vance.
🗨️ “The best way to avoid a war is to share a meal. India and Pakistan should sit together for dinner and talk. I helped them avoid a nuclear war,” Trump said, reiterating his claim of mediating in the Kashmir conflict — a claim India has repeatedly denied.
India Rejects Trump’s Mediation Claim – Again
India has categorically rejected any third-party involvement in its ceasefire agreement with Pakistan, asserting that the 2021 ceasefire reaffirmation was the result of direct, bilateral dialogue between the Indian and Pakistani military leaderships.
“There is no role for third-party mediation in the India-Pakistan dialogue, including on Kashmir,” Indian government sources said, dismissing Trump’s comments as misinformed and unnecessary interference.
This is not the first time Trump has sparked outrage in India over his Kashmir comments. In 2019, he falsely claimed that PM Narendra Modi had asked him to mediate in Kashmir, a statement the Indian government swiftly and publicly denied in Parliament.
Trump’s Grandstanding Amid Diplomatic Realities
Despite the dramatic rhetoric and performative suggestions, diplomatic experts view Trump’s remarks as detached from ground reality. While the US has historically encouraged dialogue between India and Pakistan, formal mediation is off the table as per India’s long-standing foreign policy doctrine.
“We’re not looking for a mediator to host dinners. We are looking for genuine bilateral engagement rooted in sovereignty and national interest,” a senior Indian diplomat told News Flash under the condition of anonymity.
Trump’s Claims vs Ground Reality
Trump went on to boast that his administration helped prevent a potential nuclear confrontation, suggesting that millions of lives were saved because of the US-led peacekeeping talks that, according to him, included cooperation from both India and Pakistan.
🗨️ “They (India and Pakistan) worked with us. Vice President Vance and Secretary Rubio were both there,” Trump said, without offering any concrete evidence of such cooperation or formal involvement.
India has never acknowledged attending or supporting any such US-led “peacekeeping” talks in recent years on the matter of India-Pakistan relations.
Criticism Mounts in India
Political commentators and leaders across the Indian spectrum have reacted sharply to Trump’s remarks, calling them “undiplomatic”, “paternalistic”, and a “publicity stunt.”
“This is classic Trump — drama over diplomacy. Peace between India and Pakistan cannot be served on a dinner plate,” said a former Indian ambassador to the US.
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