US President Donald Trump has doubled down on his claim of having “solved” eight global conflicts, suggesting that peace between warring neighbours Pakistan and Afghanistan could be his next diplomatic triumph. The ongoing cross-border violence, he said, would be “an easy one” for him to resolve.
“Although I do understand that Pakistan attacked, or there is an attack going on with Afghanistan. That’s an easy one for me to solve if I have to solve it. In the meantime, I have to run the USA, but I love solving wars,” Trump told reporters at the White House.
The US President reiterated his controversial claim of brokering peace between nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan — a statement India has repeatedly rejected. New Delhi maintains that the ceasefire agreement with Islamabad was the result of direct military dialogue between their Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs), without any third-party mediation.
Trump also lamented the lack of recognition for his efforts, claiming he deserved the Nobel Peace Prize for ending multiple conflicts. “I solved eight wars. Go to Rwanda and the Congo, and talk about India and Pakistan. Look at all of the wars that we solved, and every time I solved, when they said, ‘If you solve the next one, you’re going to get the Nobel Prize.’ I didn’t get a Nobel Prize. Somebody got it who is a very nice woman. I don’t know who she is, but she was very generous. I don’t care about all that stuff. I just care about saving lives. But this (Pak-Afghan conflict) will be number nine,” he said.
Tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan have sharply escalated since October 11, after Afghan forces allegedly attacked Pakistani military positions, triggering a fierce exchange. A brief 48-hour ceasefire quickly crumbled when Pakistan reportedly launched airstrikes on Afghan soil, hitting residential areas in Paktika province’s Argun and Bermal districts. The Taliban condemned the strikes as violations of the truce.
Amid the spiraling conflict, the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) announced its withdrawal from a tri-nation T20 series in Pakistan, following the deaths of three Afghan domestic players in the airstrikes. Terming the assault a “cowardly” act by the Pakistani regime, the ACB said skipping the series was “a gesture of respect” to the victims and their families. Afghanistan had been scheduled to play in Lahore and Rawalpindi from November 5 to 29.
In a dramatic escalation, Afghan forces claimed on October 12 to have killed 58 Pakistani soldiers and captured 25 military outposts in overnight operations along the Durand Line, the disputed border dividing the two nations.
