New Delhi, July 19 — U.S. President Donald Trump has ignited a diplomatic storm after claiming that “five jets were shot down” during a recent armed confrontation between India and Pakistan following the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir. The attack, which killed 26 people including tourists, led India to launch Operation Sindoor, a major military offensive targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
Trump made the remarks during a private dinner with Republican lawmakers at the White House on Friday. Referring to the four-day military escalation that followed the Pahalgam attack in early May, the former President said, “In fact, planes were being shot out of the air. Five, five, four or five, but I think five jets were shot down actually.” However, Trump did not specify which country’s aircraft were downed, nor did he provide any supporting evidence.
His assertion has raised eyebrows in New Delhi, where officials dismissed the claim and reiterated that India did not lose any fighter jets during Operation Sindoor. On May 11, Air Marshal A.K. Bharti confirmed that all Indian pilots involved in the mission returned safely.
Trump further claimed that the United States had helped defuse the tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbours through economic pressure, particularly by leveraging trade deals.
“We stopped a lot of wars. And these were serious — India and Pakistan — that was going on. These are two serious nuclear countries, and they were hitting each other,” Trump said. “We said, ‘you guys want to make a trade deal? We’re not making a trade deal if you’re going to be throwing around weapons, and maybe nuclear weapons.’”
However, Indian officials have strongly pushed back against the idea of foreign mediation, stating that the situation was addressed bilaterally and that U.S. economic pressure had no bearing on India’s decision-making.
“India has always managed such crises through its own diplomatic and military channels. There was no third-party involvement in de-escalating the conflict,” a senior Indian official told reporters on Saturday.
Operation Sindoor, launched on May 7, was a coordinated effort by the Indian Army, Air Force, and Navy to dismantle terrorist camps across the Line of Control and into Pakistan’s territory. It came as a direct response to the Pahalgam terror attack, one of the deadliest in the region in recent years.
While both nations engaged in a brief but intense military exchange, including cross-border artillery fire and airspace incursions, neither side officially confirmed the loss of fighter aircraft. Pakistan claimed it had downed Indian jets, but India categorically denied these reports.
President Trump’s remarks have drawn criticism for potentially misrepresenting facts during a sensitive diplomatic episode. Analysts say the statements could complicate ongoing U.S.-India relations, especially as India heads into a crucial phase of strategic negotiations with Washington.
This is not the first time Trump has stirred controversy over India-Pakistan tensions. In 2019, he claimed during a meeting with Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had requested his mediation on Kashmir — a claim India strongly denied.
As the dust settles from May’s Operation Sindoor, Indian officials remain firm: the crisis was contained by New Delhi’s military and diplomatic resolve, not by trade diplomacy or foreign intervention.
