Washington DC: US President Donald Trump appeared to mix up India with Iran while repeating the claim that his use of tariffs helped prevent a potential nuclear conflict between India and Pakistan.
Speaking at the White House, Trump once again defended his trade policies, saying tariffs were "key to maintaining peace and ending wars" during his presidency.
Have a look at the viral clip from his address here:
Tariffs and âEnding Warsâ
Responding to a question about whether the United States was entering a prolonged trade war with China, Trump said, âWe have a 100 percent tariff. If we didnât have tariffs, we would be exposed as being a nothing.â He claimed that tariffs were responsible for keeping peace across the world, asserting that they had helped end âfive or sixâ out of âeight warsâ during his presidency.
While making his point, Trump appeared to confuse India with Iran, saying he had been âin the midst of negotiating a trade deal with Iran,â while referring to an incident involving Pakistan. âAs an example, if you look at Pakistan and Iran, I told them I was negotiating a trade deal with Iran, and Pakistan was going to be in line. Because of tariffs, they all wanted to negotiate much differently," he said.
Trump went on to claim that after hearing the two nations were âshooting at each other,â he warned them that if they went to war, he would impose a 200 percent tariff and ban them from doing business with the US. âWithin 24 hours, the war ended. That would have been a nuclear war,â he added.
Sharif Praises Trump at Peace Summit
Trump also repeated that Pakistanâs Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had thanked him for preventing a nuclear war with India. âThe Prime Minister of Pakistan got up the other day, said so beautifully, âYou saved millions of lives,ââ Trump told reporters.
At the Gaza Peace Summit in Sharm El-Sheikh, Sharif publicly praised Trumpâs role in âpreventing a nuclear conflictâ and announced Pakistanâs decision to nominate him for the Nobel Peace Prize. Calling Trump a âman of peace,â Sharif said his âuntiring effortsâ had made the world âa place to live with peace and prosperity.â
India, however, has maintained that the de-escalation with Pakistan came after direct military talks, with both sides reaching an understanding on May 10 to end hostilities after four days of cross-border strikes.
