Donald Trump hosts Pakistani army chief, disagrees with India over India-Pakistan war mediation

US President Donald Trump has hosted Pakistan’s army chief at the White House, an unprecedented meeting that analysts say risks worsening a disagreement with India.

The meeting on Wednesday local time was the first time a US president had hosted the powerful head of Pakistan’s army, widely regarded as having sway over the country’s national security policies, at the White House, unaccompanied by senior Pakistani civilian officials.

Mr Trump told reporters he had thanked Field Marshal Asim Munir for ending the war with India, and also praised Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who he spoke to on Tuesday night.

“Two very smart people decided not to keep going with that war; that could have been a nuclear war,” Mr Trump told reporters.

Asked earlier what he wanted to achieve from meeting Pakistan’s army chief, Mr Trump told reporters: “Well, I stopped a war … I love Pakistan. I think Modi is a fantastic man. I spoke to him last night. We’re going to make a trade deal with Modi of India.

“But I stopped the war between Pakistan and India. This man was extremely influential in stopping it from the Pakistan side, Modi from the India side, and others,” he said. 

“They were going at it — and they’re both nuclear countries. I got it stopped.”

However, the Indian government says the US was not responsible. 

Mr Modi told Mr Trump in their call on Tuesday that the ceasefire was achieved through talks between the Indian and Pakistani militaries and not US mediation, India’s most senior diplomat, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, said in a statement.

“Talks for ceasing military action happened directly between India and Pakistan through existing military channels, and on the insistence of Pakistan. Prime Minister Modi emphasised that India has not accepted mediation in the past and will never do,” said Mr Misri.

No mediation

The heaviest fighting in decades between India and Pakistan was sparked by an April 22 attack in Indian Kashmir that killed 26 people. 

New Delhi blamed “terrorists” backed by Pakistan, a charge Islamabad denies.

Pakistan has thanked Washington for playing a mediating role; however, India has repeatedly denied any third-party mediation.

“Islamabad is leaning on Trump to push India for direct India-Pakistan talks, while Delhi is refusing to hold bilateral talks on external pressures,” said Muhammad Faisal, a South Asia security researcher based at the University of Technology Sydney.

He said a “tense calm” has prevailed between the two sides.

They have withdrawn troops after the escalation in Kashmir, but India is refusing to resume adherence to the Indus Waters Treaty.

Tourism operators in Kashmir said there had been few tourists in the scenic Himalayan region since the attacks.

Mr Trump said last month that India and Pakistan agreed to a ceasefire after talks mediated by the US, where he urged the countries to focus on trade instead of war.

Previously, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that both sides had agreed to hold talks on a “broad set of issues at a neutral site”.

Seema Khan, a professor at Deakin University, said the meeting reflected a complex strategic balancing act that Pakistan faces.

“Any shift toward Washington could risk straining Islamabad’s crucial defence partnership with Beijing. The geopolitical stakes for Pakistan are therefore extremely high, and any miscalculation could have profound consequences for its security, stability, and sovereignty,” she told the ABC.

She said it also marked Washington’s “tacit acknowledgement” that real authority in Pakistan resides with the military leadership.

Michael Kugelman, of the Asia Pacific Foundation think tank, said India-US ties, which have thrived in recent years, could suffer if Trump continued to make remarks about a US role in the ceasefire.

“For Delhi, it all boils down to an age-old question: How much can it tolerate US-Pakistan cooperation without having it spoil US-India relations — a partnership that’s thrived in recent years.”

Talks over Israel-Iran

Mr Munir was expected to press Mr Trump not to enter Israel’s war with Iran and seek a ceasefire, Pakistani officials and experts said.

A section of Pakistan’s embassy in Washington represents Iran’s interests in the United States, as Tehran does not have diplomatic relations with the US.

Pakistan does not recognise Israel as a state.

Ms Khan said the US may be seeking Pakistan’s cooperation in containing or confronting Iran, directly or indirectly, or adding pressure to normalise relations with Israel. 

She emphasised that the regional landscape remained deeply unstable, and Pakistan’s position within it was increasingly precarious.

“Pakistan has been under growing pressure to reconsider its position [and recognise Israel] — not only from Western powers but also from the Arab world,” she added.

The meeting represented a major boost in US-Pakistan ties, which had largely languished under his predecessor Joe Biden, as both courted India as part of efforts to push back against China.

ABC/wires