US President Donald Trump on Wednesday defended the imposition of tariffs on India and Pakistan and said that “solved eight wars” of which “five-six because of tariffs”.
“We are doing so well as a country
right now because of tariffs. Tariffs have been used against us for many decades. That’s why we owe $37 trillion… We’re a rich country. We’re taking in money like we’ve never done before. Without tariffs, that would not be happening,” Trump told reporters.
Once again claiming that he had put an end to the recent India and Pakistan war, the President said: “I solved eight wars. Of the 8, 5-6 of them are because of tariffs… India and Pakistan, if you want to fight, that’s okay. But you’re going to pay tariffs, and they’re going to be very substantial. We’re in the midst of a trade deal, and they said, we don’t want to do that. Two days later, they call up and say they’re not going to fight anymore. They have peace. But I’ve done out of eight, I would say six times.”
The US President’s comments refer to India’s Operation Sindoor, which involved precision strikes on nine terrorist camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) after the Pahalgam terror attack on 22 April, which killed 26 civilians. According to Trump, his intervention, including the threat of crippling tariffs, led both countries to step back from conflict within 24 hours.
Since May 2025, Trump has repeated versions of this claim more than 40 times across speeches, interviews, and social media.
Meanwhile, India has maintained that the decision regarding the ceasefire and the truce was taken bilaterally between the top military officials in New Delhi and Islamabad.
On Wednesday, the US President said: “Tariffs are vital to this country… We made a fair deal with Japan, the European Union. We made a fair deal with South Korea. These are countries that were taking so much money away from us, not sustainable.”
#WATCH | Washington DC | US President Donald Trump says, “We are doing so well as a country right now because of tariffs. Tariffs have been used against us for many decades. That’s why we owe $37 trillion… We’re a rich country. We’re taking in money like we’ve never done… pic.twitter.com/EV7V6lkBT9
— ANI (@ANI) October 22, 2025
Meanwhile, NATO secretary Mark Rutte on Wednesday held talks with President Donald Trump on Russia-Ukraine war.
In a post on X, Rutte said: “Good to be in DC today to talk about #NATO support to bring the war against Ukraine to a just and lasting end. I’m grateful to President Trump for his crucial work to stop the killing. A ceasefire is the first step – they should stop where they are. Ukraine is ready & it’s important that all continue to apply pressure – through support to Ukraine, sanctions, shadow fleet, and more – to bring Russia to the table.”
Earlier in the day, the US imposed sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies for funding “Kremlin’s war machine”.
According to a statement by the Treasury Department, the sanctions have been imposed on Russia’s two largest oil companies, Open Joint Stock Company Rosneft Oil Company (Rosneft) and Lukoil OAO (Lukoil).
“The US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is imposing further sanctions as a result of Russia’s lack of serious commitment to a peace process to end the war in Ukraine. Today’s actions increase pressure on Russia’s energy sector and degrade the Kremlin’s ability to raise revenue for its war machine and support its weakened economy,” it stated.
It said: “Rosneft is a vertically integrated energy company specializing in the exploration, extraction, production, refining, transport, and sale of petroleum, natural gas, and petroleum products. Lukoil engages in the exploration, production, refining, marketing, and distribution of oil and gas in Russia and internationally.”
The department further stated that the US will continue to advocate for a peaceful resolution to the war, and a permanent peace depends entirely on Russia’s willingness to negotiate in good faith.
