Donald Trump on India-Pak: Prez says Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif told him ‘35 million people would’ve died’ if he didn’t end the conflict

U.S. President Donald Trump in his State of the Union Address on Tuesday (February 24, 2026) night claimed that Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif told him that 5 million people would have died had he not intervened in the conflict between India and Pakistan in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attacks last year.

“In my first 10 months, I ended eight wars… Cambodia and Thailand… Pakistan and India would have had a nuclear war. 35 million people, said the Prime Minister of Pakistan, would have died if it were not for my involvement,” he claimed.

Mr. Trump has claimed credit for stopping the India-Pakistan conflict more than 80 times since May 10 last year, when he announced on social media that the two neighbours had agreed to a “full and immediate” ceasefire after talks mediated by the U.S..

India has denied any involvement of the United States in the agreement to cease hostilities with Pakistan, maintaining that the request to end military operations had come from the Director General of Military operations in Pakistan.

India had initiated Operation Sindoor on May 7, 2025, in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack, which claimed the lives of 26 civilians. The operation was a punitive and targeted campaign to dismantle the terror infrastructure across the Line of Control and deeper inside Pakistan. In the aftermath of Operation Sindoor, Pakistan initiated a series of retaliatory drone and UCAV attacks targeting key Indian airbases and logistics infrastructure.

Meanwhile, in his State of the Union Address, the U.S. President said his administration was “working hard” to end “the killing and slaughter between Russia and Ukraine, calling it “a war which would have never happened if I were President.”

Addressing the situation in Iran, Mr. Trump kept his options open saying he still preferred a diplomatic solution.

Also Read | Iran walks a tightrope between diplomacy and deterrence

“They have already developed missiles that can threaten Europe and our bases overseas, and they are working to build missiles that will soon reach the United States of America. My preference is to solve this problem through diplomacy. But one thing is certain, I will never allow the world’s number one sponsor of terror, which they are by far, to have a nuclear weapon. Can’t happen,” Mr. Trump said.