Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Monday said that no phone call was held between Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi and United States (US) President Donald Trump during military clashes between Pakistan and India in May this year.

 

“There was no call between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Trump between April 22 (the Pahalgam attack) and June 17 ... and at no stage was there any link to trade,” he said during a special debate on Operation Sindoor in the Indian parliament.

 

The minister’s statements come after repeated claims by US President Trump that he stopped the conflict between Islamabad and New Delhi with trade deals.

 

During a press briefing at the White House earlier in July, Trump said that the conflict stopped “over trade”. “We stopped a lot of fights ... I think a very big one frankly ... India and Pakistan and we stopped that over trade. We are dealing with India; we are dealing with Pakistan,” Trump added.

 

In mid-July, during a meeting with North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) Secretary-General Mark Rutte, Trump reiterated that the two nations were on the brink of nuclear war before his intervention and claimed he used trade as leverage to settle the conflict.

 

“India and Pakistan would have been (in) a nuclear war within another week, the way that was going (on). I said, we’re not going to talk to you about trade unless you get this thing settled. And they did,” Trump said.

 

However, India has maintained that the understanding on cessation of hostilities with Pakistan was reached following direct talks between the Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) of the two militaries.

 

Following the April 22 Pahalgam incident in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), New Delhi, on the night of May 6-7, breaching sovereignty and territorial integrity, launched strikes in Pakistan, killing innocent civilians.

 

In response, the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) shot down Indian Air Force (IAF) fighter jets including Rafales. Following the humiliation, India launched drones and missiles at Pakistan. Acting swiftly, the latter country hit their air bases, inflicting heavy damage.

 

On May 10, the US administration intervened and announced a ceasefire between them. Islamabad extended thanks to US President Trump, acknowledging his role in brokering peace between the two countries.

 

Last month, Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said in a video statement that the decision to halt military action was made directly between India and Pakistan, through existing channels of the two armies, adding that PM Modi stressed that “India has never accepted mediation, does not and will never do so. There is complete political consensus in India on this issue”.