Trump | Pakistan

US President Donald Trump has now raised the tally of aircraft shot down during the May 2025 conflict between Pakistan and India to 10. The latest remarks by the US president came during an interview with Fox Business, which was aired on Wednesday. The host was praising Trump’s “reciprocity policy” in trade and using tariffs for that when the US president chimed in: “And that’s being very nice and gentle. Look, I settled eight wars. Out of the eight wars, at least six were settled because of tariffs.” Trump then explained: “In other words, I said, ‘if you don’t settle this war, I’m gonna charge you tariffs because I don’t wanna see people getting killed.’ And they said, ‘no, what does this have to do with it?’ I said, ‘you’re gonna be charged.’” “Like India and Pakistan 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,” he added. Over the past 10 months, the US president has stated numerous times that aircraft were shot down during the c...

The United States will have to do “something very tough” if a deal is not reached with Iran, President Donald Trump told Israel’s Channel 12 in an interview published online on Tuesday. “Either we reach a deal, or we’ll have to do something very tough,” it quoted Trump as saying. Trump has said he is considering sending a second aircraft carrier to the Middle East, Axios and Channel 12 reported, amid simmering tensions between Washington and Tehran over Iran’s nuclear programme and over its recent crackdown on protesters. “We have an armada that is heading there and another one might be going,” Trump told Axios, though he noted that Iran “wants to make a deal very badly”. Trump initially threatened military action against Tehran over its crackdown on protesters last month. Subsequently, the US said that a naval strike group led by an aircraft carrier was deployed to Middle Eastern waters amid tensions between the two countries. However, the countries held talks in Oman last week, which Iran called a good star...

Netanyahu says Iran talks top his agenda with Trump, urging a tougher US stance on Tehran’s missiles

Convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell refused Monday to answer questions from US lawmakers but her attorney said she was prepared to speak if granted clemency by US President Donald Trump. Maxwell, 64, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex trafficking, was subpoenaed by the House Oversight Committee to discuss her relations with Epstein. Rather than answer the committee’s questions, however, the former British socialite invoked her Fifth Amendment right to not incriminate herself. A recording of the deposition released by the committee showed Maxwell speaking via video link, her eyes cast down at the table she was seated in a Texas prison. She was asked about her and Epstein’s co-conspirators, whether they surrounded themselves with the rich and famous in order to “curry favor” and avoid scrutiny, and whether Trump ever engaged “in sexual activity with an individual introduced to him by you or Jeffrey Epstein.” Wearing a drab, beige uniform, Maxwell repeated the phra...

US President Donald Trump refused to apologise on Friday for a video posted on his social media account depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as monkeys, though he said he condemned the post as the White House shifted the blame to staff. The video shared on Trump’s Truth Social account late on Thursday night sparked censure across the US political spectrum, with the White House initially rejecting “fake outrage” only to then blame the post on an error by a staff member. “I didn’t make a mistake,” Trump said on Air Force One late on Friday when asked if he would apologise for the post. Asked if he condemns the racist imagery in the video, Trump replied: “Of course I do.” Democrats slammed Trump as “vile” over the clip of the Obamas — the first Black president and first lady in US history while a senior Republican senator said the video was blatantly racist. Near the end of the one-minute-long video promoting conspiracies about Republican Trump’s 2020 election loss to Joe Biden, the Obamas were shown with their f...

US President Donald Trump said Friday that Washington held “very good talks” on Iran after the two sides held an indirect dialogue in Oman. Iran, for its part, said it expected to hold more negotiations with the United States, hailing a “positive atmosphere” during a day of talks in the Gulf sultanate. With an American naval group led by an aircraft carrier in Middle Eastern waters, US and Iranian delegations held talks in Muscat mediated by Oman without publicly meeting face-to-face. Shortly after the talks concluded, the US announced new sanctions against shipping entities and vessels, aimed at curbing Iran’s oil exports. But it was not clear if the move was linked to the talks. The talks were the first between the two foes since the United States joined Israel’s war with Iran in June with strikes on nuclear sites. “We likewise had very good talks on Iran,” Trump told reporters on board Air Force One en route to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, adding, “we’re going to meet again early next week.” However, ...

A video shared on United States President Donald Trump’s social media account that depicted former president Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama as apes was deleted on Friday, following criticism that Trump’s post evoked racist imagery long used to dehumanise people of African descent. “A White House staffer erroneously made the post,” said a White House official, who declined to be named. “It has been taken down.” The statement came hours after White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt described as “fake outrage” a wave of negative reactions to the video, including from several prominent Republican lawmakers. Late on Thursday, Trump shared a minute-long video amplifying the Republican US president’s false claims that his 2020 election defeat was the result of fraud. Spliced into the video was an apparently AI-generated clip of dancing primates superimposed with the Obamas’ heads. The post on Trump’s Truth Social network drew swift criticism from prominent political figures, including Republican Senator...

US President Donald Trump on Thursday rejected an offer from his Russian counterpart to voluntarily extend the caps on strategic nuclear weapons deployments after the treaty that held them in check expired. “Rather than extend ‘New START … we should have our Nuclear Experts work on a new, improved and modernised Treaty that can last long into the future,” Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform. Arms control advocates warn that the expiration of the treaty will fuel an accelerated nuclear arms race, while US opponents say the pact constrained the US ability to deploy enough weapons to deter nuclear threats posed by both Russia and China. Trump’s post was in response to a proposal by Russian President Vladimir Putin for the sides to adhere for a year to the 2010 accord’s limit of 1,550 warheads on 700 delivery systems — missiles, aircraft and submarines. New START was the last in a series of arms control treaties between the world’s two largest nuclear weapons powers dating back more than half a cen...

Chinese leader Xi Jinping called on Wednesday for “mutual respect” in strengthening relations with the United States, warning President Donald Trump in a phone call to use “caution” when selling arms to Taiwan, Beijing’s state media reported. Xi expressed the hope that bilateral issues — amongst which trade figures highly — could be resolved amicably between the world’s two largest economies. “By tackling issues one by one and continuously building mutual trust, we can forge a right way for the two countries to get along,” Xi said, according to state broadcaster CCTV. “Let us make 2026 a year in which China and the United States, as two major countries, move toward mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and win-win cooperation,” he added. Trump, in a post on his Truth Social platform following what he called an “excellent” call, said ties between the two countries were “extremely good”. “The relationship with China, and my personal relationship with President Xi, is an extremely good one, and we both realise h...

Russia faces a steep drop in oil income if United States President Donald Trump successfully pressures India to stop importing Russian crude, because losing its top purchaser of seaborne exports would force Moscow to slash prices to find other buyers, analysts and traders said. Trump on Monday cut US tariffs on Indian goods in a trade deal he said also included provisions for India to halt oil imports from Russia, the world’s second-biggest oil exporter. The US is also putting pressure on Russia to agree to a peace deal in Ukraine. Trump has over the past year already claimed that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi agreed to stop buying Russian oil. India never halted imports, however, citing its need for energy security and for cheap oil. The Kremlin says energy cooperation with India, its second-largest oil buyer after China, is strong after Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the country in December 2025. But Indian refiners are taking a cautious approach to Russian oil purchases, which is already hu...

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has ordered the start of nuclear talks with the United States, as his counterpart Donald Trump threatened “bad things” if no deal with the Islamic republic was struck. Following the Iranian authorities’ response to anti-government protests that peaked last month, the US president has threatened military action and ordered the dispatch of an aircraft carrier group to the Middle East. Trump has maintained he is hopeful that Washington will “work something out” with Iran, but also warned late on Monday that “bad things would happen” if no deal is reached. Tehran has insisted it wants diplomacy, while vowing an unbridled response to any aggression. Iranian state media reported on Monday that President Masoud Pezeshkian ordered the start of nuclear talks with Washington. Pezeshkian confirmed on Tuesday that he had ordered the start of nuclear talks. “I have instructed my Minister of Foreign Affairs, provided that a suitable environment exists — one free from threats and unreason...

United States President Donald Trump announced a “trade deal” with India on Monday after speaking to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying New Delhi agreed to stop buying Russian oil and may purchase it instead from Venezuela. In a post on social media platform Truth Social, the US president said that he and the Indian premier spoke about “many things”, including trade and the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. Trump added that “out of friendship and respect” for Modi, the US would lower its reciprocal tariff rate from 25 per cent to 18pc, while India would reduce tariffs on US goods to zero. “He (Modi) agreed to stop buying Russian oil, and to buy much more from the United States and, potentially, Venezuela,” Trump wrote, adding that this would “end the war” between Russia and Ukraine. The US president, calling Modi “one of my greatest friends, and a powerful and respected leader of his country”, said that he agreed to “buy American” at a much higher level. Trump added that India would buy, “over $500 bi...

Deal sealed as Trump cuts India tariffs to 18%

US President Donald Trump on Sunday said he was hopeful of agreeing a deal with Iran after the country’s supreme leader warned that any US attack on the Islamic republic would trigger a regional war. Following the Iranian authorities’ response to anti-government protests that peaked last month, Trump has threatened military action and ordered the dispatch of an aircraft carrier group to the Middle East. Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Sunday likened the recent protests to a “coup”, warning that a US attack would trigger a broad conflict. “The Americans should know that if they start a war, this time it will be a regional war,” he said, telling Iranians they “should not be scared” of Trump’s rhetoric. “They (rioters) attacked the police, government centres, IRGC centres, banks, and mosques, and burned the Quran … It was like a coup,” Khamenei said, adding that “the coup was suppressed”. Asked about the Iranian leader’s warning, Trump told reporters on Sunday: “Of course he is going to say that...

United States President Donald Trump on Saturday said India will buy Venezuelan oil, as opposed to purchasing oil from Iran. “We’ve already made that deal, the concept of the deal,” Trump told reporters while on Air Force One, en route to Florida from Washington, DC. Trump also said on Saturday that China was also welcome to make a deal with the US to buy Venezuelan oil. Trump’s comment came a day after the US told Delhi it could soon resume purchases of Venezuelan oil to help replace imports of Russian oil, three people familiar with the matter told Reuters. India pledged to slash Russian crude oil purchases after Washington also hiked tariffs related to that activity, and India is on track to lower its Russian oil imports by several hundred thousand barrels per day in the coming months, according to the sources, who declined to be identified. Trump imposed 25 per cent tariffs on countries buying Venezuelan oil, including India, in March 2025, and his administration ramped up a campaign against Venezuelan Pr...

United States President Donald Trump said on Friday that he believed Tehran wanted to make a deal to avoid military action, adding that the US “armada” near Iran was bigger than the one he dispatched to topple Venezuela’s leader. The development came hours after Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran is prepared to resume talks with Washington, but they should be fair and not include Iran’s defence capabilities. Trump made these remarks while addressing reporters in the Oval Office of the White House. “We have a large armada, flotilla, you can call it whatever you want, heading to Iran right now. Even larger than what we had in Venezuela,” the president stated. “Hopefully, we’ll make a deal. If we do make a deal, that’s good; if we don’t make a deal, we’ll see what happens,” Trump added. Asked if Iran had been given any deadline for a deal on its nuclear programme, ballistic missiles and other issues, Trump replied, “Only they know for sure.” He added that he had communicated that directly. “We’ll...

US President Donald Trump walked back his conciliatory tone on Friday after outrage over the killings of two American citizens in Minneapolis by federal agents, branding one of them, Alex Pretti, an “agitator.” Footage shared online this week reportedly showed intensive care nurse Pretti in a scuffle with federal agents 11 days before he was shot dead on Saturday by officers enforcing an immigration crackdown. The White House has scrambled to stem widespread outrage over Pretti’s killing, which came weeks after Renee Good, another US citizen and mother of three, was fatally shot by agents in the same city. Trump claimed he wanted to “de-escalate a little bit” in the fallout of the killings and appointed a new point man in Minneapolis, border chief Tom Homan, who said on Thursday that some federal agents could be withdrawn from the city after weeks of protests against immigration raids. On Friday, the US president said Pretti, 37, was an “agitator and, perhaps, insurrectionist,” on his Truth Social platform. “...

US President Donald Trump said it was dangerous for Britain to be getting into business with Beijing, as Prime Minister Keir Starmer lauded the economic benefits of resetting relations with China during a visit there on Friday. As Western leaders reel from Trump’s unpredictability, Starmer is the latest to head to China. In three-hour talks with President Xi Jinping on Thursday, the British leader called for a “more sophisticated relationship” with improved market access, lower tariffs and investment deals while also discussing football and Shakespeare. From left, Zheng Zeguang, Chinese ambassador to to Britain, Ren Hongbin, Chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Ge Haijia on January 30, 2026. —Reuters In Washington, however, replying to questions about the closer ties, Trump said, “Well, it’s very dangerous for them to do that.” He was speaking to reporters ahead of the premiere of the “Melania” film at the Kennedy Center. He did not ...

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday he hoped to avoid military action against Iran, which has threatened to strike American bases and aircraft carriers in response to any attack. Trump said he is speaking with Iran and left open the possibility of avoiding a military operation after earlier warning that time was “running out” for Tehran as the United States sends a large naval fleet to the region. When asked if he would have talks with Iran, Trump told reporters: “I have had and I am planning on it.” “We have a group headed out to a place called Iran, and hopefully we won’t have to use it,” the US president added, while speaking to media at the premiere of a documentary about his wife Melania. As Brussels and Washington dialled up their rhetoric and Iran issued stark threats this week, UN chief Antonio Guterres has called for nuclear negotiations to “avoid a crisis that could have devastating consequences in the region”. An Iranian military spokesman warned Tehran’s response to any US action would not ...

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that it “looks like” Hamas would give up its weapons, a step the group has not confirmed, in what would be a major step forward in the fragile Gaza ceasefire with Israel. “A lot of people said they’ll never disarm. It looks like they’re going to disarm,” Trump told a cabinet meeting. Trump hailed cooperation with Hamas after Israeli forces brought back the remains of the last captive held in Gaza, Ran Gvili. “They did help us with those bodies, getting them back, and that family is so grateful,” Trump said. Trump had asked for an update on the Middle East from his roving special envoy Steve Witkoff, sitting in the side of the room as cabinet members and media listened. An upbeat Witkoff voiced high confidence in Hamas following through. “We’ve got the terrorists out of there and they’re going to demilitarise. They will because they have no choice,” Witkoff said. “They’re going to give it up. They’re going to give up the AK-47s,” he told Trump. Hamas has said that the...