In a statement that has rattled diplomatic circles across South Asia, US President Donald Trump on Sunday described Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief General Asim Munir as “great people”, asserting that tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan would be resolved “very quickly.”
His remarks came during a speech at the ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, where he boasted of his administration’s record in conflict resolution, saying, “Ended 8 wars in 8 months.”
Trump’s comments — delivered with characteristic bravado — have not only raised eyebrows but also stunned many in India, where memories of Pakistan’s long record of exporting terrorism remain raw.
For decades, Pakistan has been globally recognized as a state sponsor of cross-border terror, responsible for training and funding militant groups that have targeted India repeatedly — from the 1993 Mumbai blasts to the 26/11 terror attack, the Pathankot and Pulwama assaults, and countless others.
Adding to the outrage is the irony that the very nation Trump now calls “great” once sheltered Osama bin Laden, the mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks that killed nearly 3,000 Americans.
Bin Laden was discovered and killed in Abbottabad, Pakistan, during a daring US Navy SEAL operation — one of the most significant counterterrorism raids in modern history.
Observers and policy experts in New Delhi and Washington alike are calling out what they see as blatant hypocrisy and diplomatic amnesia.
Only recently, Pakistan’s own former Defense Minister Khawaja Asif had admitted that his country had been “aiding and abetting terrorism against India” — allegedly under pressure from certain Western powers, including the United States.
Yet, despite this damning record, Trump’s remarks struck a strangely conciliatory tone.
“I do it nicely… but if I can take time and save millions of lives, that’s really a great thing!” he said. “It’s an honor to be involved on behalf of the United States.”
The timing of Trump’s statement has further fuelled speculation about his geopolitical motives.
Pakistan and Afghanistan are currently engaged in sensitive talks in Turkey to reduce border tensions and curb terrorist infiltration from Afghan soil. The dialogue, facilitated by Qatar and Turkiye, follows an earlier round in Doha on October 19.
While the talks aim to bring stability to the volatile border region, Trump’s words have created an unexpected distraction — with many seeing them as a diplomatic endorsement of Pakistan’s military establishment, often accused of harboring extremist networks.
Back home in the United States, Trump’s comments have triggered a fresh wave of political backlash.
Critics across party lines accuse him of undermining America’s historic stance on counterterrorism and alienating long-time allies like India, which has consistently supported US-led global anti-terror efforts.
For many Indians, the statement feels like a betrayal — a reminder that in global geopolitics, strategic convenience often trumps moral clarity.
As one senior Indian security official put it succinctly: ‘The world may forget, but India cannot.’ The blood of innocent lives lost to Pakistan-sponsored terror will never be washed clean with empty praise.”
Another said it was because Trump backed Pakistan that its self-styled Field Marshal General Asim Munin had recently threatened India with a nuclear war.
If India and Pakistan get engaged in another war, it would solely be because of the US President Donald Trump, who has weird ways of declaring himself as the biggest peace maker who stopped eight wars in eight months, said another security official.
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