Operation Sindoor: Trump asserts role in preventing a nuclear war between India and Pakistan

US President Donald Trump renewed a claim that direct outreach with Pakistan and India stopped a major escalation during Operation Sindoor. Trump said Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif privately warned that "35 million people" could have died. Indian authorities have long rejected any US mediation role in the four-day confrontation.

Trump made the remarks while describing foreign policy achievements from the first presidential term. The comments came during Trump’s first State of the Union address of the second term. Trump repeated an earlier warning of an India-Pakistan "nuclear war". Trump also added the casualty figure in public for the first time.

Asked about US involvement earlier, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said the US "was in the United States." Indian officials have maintained the same position since the operation. New Delhi has stated that no third party brokered any pause. India’s account focuses on bilateral military communication, not external facilitation.

Trump described the episode while listing conflicts said to be settled quickly. Trump told lawmakers: "In my first 10 months, I ended eight wars... 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 said. The speech grouped South Asia with other global disputes.

The address included a set of disputes that Trump said were defused through US engagement. Operation Sindoor appeared among West Asia, Africa, Europe and Asia items. The list included Israel, Iran, and several regional rivalries. Below is the set of conflicts Trump cited during the remarks.

Conflict partners	Trump's claimed role
Israel and Hamas	Ending a war
Israel and Iran	Ending a war
Egypt and Ethiopia	Ending a war
India and Pakistan (Operation Sindoor)	Preventing "nuclear war"
Serbia and Kosovo	Ending a war
Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo	Ending a war
Armenia and Azerbaijan	Ending a war
Cambodia and Thailand	Ending a war

Donald Trump Operation Sindoor claim and India-Pakistan ceasefire talks

Indian statements have attributed the halt to direct talks between the two militaries. Officials have said Pakistan’s Director General of Military Operations called India’s DGMO on the hotline. India then paused the offensive after that outreach. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri described the result as a "ceasefire understanding," reached between both sides.

Donald Trump Operation Sindoor claim and Pahalgam attack backdrop

The confrontation followed a terror attack in Pahalgam on April 22 last year. The strike killed 26 tourists. India blamed Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed networks based in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. On May 7, India began Operation Sindoor and said targets were terror infrastructure across the Line of Control.

Trump’s repeated narrative has also created fresh discomfort in Islamabad. Pakistan had nominated Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize last year. That nomination credited Trump’s role in halting Operation Sindoor. Pakistani authorities praised Trump's "diplomatic intervention," but now face questions over the new "35 million" figure. India, Pakistan and the US still agree the episode carried major risks.