Shehbaz Sharif Credits Trump for Averting 2025 India-Pakistan Conflict at UNGA
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif used his address to the United Nations General Assembly on September 25 to thank US President Donald Trump for what he described as a “timely intervention” during the 2025 military conflict between India and Pakistan. Sharif said Trump’s involvement helped prevent a wider conflict and claimed that it saved hundreds of millions of lives in South Asia.
Sharif also raised the Kashmir issue during his speech and called for what he described as a “just and fair solution”. He linked the issue to the need to prevent another major confrontation between the two countries. Pakistan has repeatedly raised Kashmir at the UN, while India rejects Pakistan’s position and maintains that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India.
The 2025 conflict followed the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, in which 26 civilians were killed. India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting what it described as terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The military confrontation later ended with an understanding between the two sides.
Trump has repeatedly claimed that his administration played a major role in stopping the conflict. India, however, has consistently rejected the description of the ceasefire as being brokered by the United States. New Delhi has said that the understanding was reached through direct communication between the Indian and Pakistani military leaderships and that there was no third-party mediation.
Sharif also spoke about the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT), a water-sharing agreement signed by India and Pakistan in 1960. India announced in April 2025 that it was placing the treaty in abeyance following the Pahalgam attack. Pakistan has opposed the move, while India has linked its decision to concerns over cross-border terrorism.
The treaty remains a major point of disagreement between the two countries. In August 2026, an arbitration court in The Hague ruled on issues concerning the treaty, but India rejected the court’s authority and said the ruling would not affect its sovereign decisions.
During his UN speech, Sharif also highlighted Pakistan’s diplomatic efforts involving the United States and Iran. He said Pakistan had helped bring Washington and Tehran together in Islamabad during the regional conflict and pointed to discussions and an Islamabad memorandum as steps towards reducing tensions. Sharif also praised Pakistan’s military leadership for supporting diplomatic efforts during what he described as difficult circumstances.
India is expected to exercise its Right of Reply at the UN through one of its younger diplomats in response to Sharif’s remarks. New Delhi has repeatedly rejected Pakistan’s claims regarding Kashmir and has maintained that disputes between the two countries should be addressed through established bilateral mechanisms.