Trump Repeats He Stopped India-Pakistan War After ‘Eight Planes Were Shot Down’

During a speech at the American Business Forum in Miami, Donald Trump once again weighed in on the earlier military skirmish between India and Pakistan, stating that eight aircraft were “essentially” shot down during the May conflict.

“I was in the midst of a trade deal with both of them … and then I read on the front page eight planes, seven planes were shot down, an eighth was really badly wounded,” Trump said during the event.

He claimed that his threat to withhold future trade deals had prompted an immediate cease-fire between the two neighbouring countries.

Trump said he refused trade talks with India and Pakistan while they were in conflict, adding, “A day later I get a call, ‘We made peace’. I said, ‘Thank you, let’s trade’.”

He specifically praised Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Pakistan’s Field Marshall Chief of Army Staff Asim Munir, even though India has disputed elements of his narrative. The underlying conflict between India and Pakistan erupted after India launched retaliatory airstrikes in May, following a militant attack in Kashmir, leading to a four-day escalation between the two nuclear-armed nations.

Trump’s remarks serve two purposes: first, they reinforce his claim of having played a decisive role in ending the conflict; second, they highlight how military-diplomatic events are being reframed into personal political achievements. As one observer put it, “The numbers keep creeping higher, but any independent verification remains elusive.”

The exact number of aircraft shot down during the May 2025 India-Pakistan skirmish remains disputed. Pakistan’s military claimed it downed five to six Indian fighter jets, while India asserted that it destroyed six Pakistani aircraft, including five fighters and a surveillance plane. Independent analysts suggest that at least three to four aircraft were likely lost overall, though neither side has provided verifiable proof.

It was Trump’s third public claim regarding aircraft losses in the skirmish, despite referencing to the peace deal countless other times, both private and public. Earlier remarks referenced “five” and then “seven” jets shot down by the end of October. The November 6th American Business Forum speech marks the first time President Trump has alleviated the number of planes downed.