US President Donald Trump has increased his estimate of aircraft shot down during the May 2025 military confrontation between Pakistan and India, now saying 10 planes were brought down.
Speaking in an interview with Fox Business aired Wednesday, Trump made the remarks while discussing his trade policies. As the host praised his “reciprocity policy” and use of tariffs, Trump said he had helped resolve multiple international conflicts.
“I settled eight wars. Out of the eight wars, at least six were settled because of tariffs,” he said, arguing that economic pressure played a decisive role.
Explaining his approach, Trump said he warned countries involved in conflicts that failure to reach a settlement would result in trade penalties. “If you don’t settle this war, I’m gonna charge you tariffs because I don’t wanna see people getting killed,” he said.
Referring to the Pakistan-India standoff, Trump added: “Like India and Pakistan — it would’ve been a nuclear war in my opinion. They were really going at it. Ten planes were shot down. They were going at it.”
Over the past several months, Trump has repeatedly cited aircraft losses during the conflict, though he has not specified which side suffered them. He initially claimed that five jets were downed, later revising the figure to seven in October and eight in November before now raising it to 10.
During the interview, Trump also said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had thanked him for helping avert a larger catastrophe, quoting him as saying he had “saved at least 10 million lives” by facilitating a ceasefire.
“Because they were going nuclear, in my opinion. Without tariffs, that wouldn’t have happened,” Trump asserted.
He also pointed to his involvement in easing tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan, saying progress was made after he brokered an initial peace agreement in August 2025.
Trump went on to criticise past US administrations, claiming that every president over the last five decades had been weak on trade. “But I’m not bad on trade. I’m real good on trade,” he said.
US ties with Pakistan and India
During a September 2025 Oval Office meeting, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif publicly thanked Trump for his role in mediating a ceasefire after the four-day conflict between Pakistan and India in May.
The escalation had followed an April 2025 attack on tourists in occupied Kashmir, which India blamed on Islamabad without presenting evidence — an allegation Pakistan strongly denied. The crisis saw both sides exchange military strikes before a ceasefire was announced by Trump, who has since repeatedly highlighted his role in halting the hostilities.
Trump has also praised Pakistan’s Chief of the Army Staff, Field Marshal Asim Munir, describing him on several occasions as a “highly respected general” and a “great fighter.”
India, however, has disputed Trump’s assertions that the ceasefire resulted from US intervention or trade-related pressure.
Despite earlier tensions, Trump announced a new trade deal with New Delhi this month. Shortly afterward, Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar visited Washington for a three-day trip, holding talks with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.