In a striking moment at the United Nations General Assembly, US President Donald Trump showered praise on Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, calling him a “terrific man” and crediting him with recognizing efforts that saved tens of millions of lives during last year’s tense India-Pakistan standoff.
Speaking before world leaders at the opening session of the 81st UN General Assembly on Tuesday, Trump highlighted his administration’s diplomatic interventions across multiple global conflicts, placing special emphasis on his role in defusing tensions between nuclear-armed Pakistan and India in May 2025.
“The prime minister of Pakistan, terrific man, said that Donald Trump was responsible for saving 30 million lives, and probably many more than that,” Trump told the assembly, singling out PM Shehbaz among leaders who had thanked him for conflict resolution.
The US president claimed credit for helping settle eight wars since taking office, including disputes between Cambodia and Thailand, Kosovo and Serbia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda, Armenia and Azerbaijan, and the Gaza conflict. However, his focus on the Pakistan-India mediation stood out as particularly significant given the nuclear dimensions of that confrontation.
Trump revealed that nearly all countries involved in these settlements had sent him letters of gratitude, with PM Shehbaz’s acknowledgment receiving special mention during the high-profile address.
Prime Minister Shehbaz, who arrived in New York on Monday for the UNGA session, has previously described Trump as a “man of peace” and publicly thanked him for intervening during the brief but intense four-day military conflict between Pakistan and India in May 2025. The Pakistani leader went so far as to nominate Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, stating the US president’s intervention helped “avert a major catastrophe in South Asia.”
This mutual admiration marks a dramatic turnaround in Pakistan-US relations, which had experienced a prolonged cold period before warming significantly during Trump’s second term. The relationship reset began with secret counterterrorism cooperation and accelerated following Trump’s unexpected praise of Pakistan’s counterterrorism efforts in March 2025.
The May 2025 skirmish between Pakistan and India became the decisive turning point. Pakistan’s military discipline and strategic response during the crisis reportedly impressed Trump, leading to unprecedented diplomatic engagement. Despite India’s repeated denials of any mediation, both Trump and PM Shehbaz have consistently highlighted the US president’s role in brokering the ceasefire.
Trump has also repeatedly praised Pakistan’s military leadership, particularly Chief of Defence Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, whom he has called a “highly respected general,” a “great fighter,” and “my favourite.” The US president invited Field Marshal Munir to a high-profile luncheon last year, marking the first such meeting for a Pakistani military chief, followed by a red-carpet visit to US Central Command.
The public praise at the UN General Assembly represents another milestone in the transformed relationship between Washington and Islamabad, signaling continued strategic cooperation between the two nations. For Pakistan, Trump’s words on the global stage provide significant diplomatic validation and enhance the country’s international standing at a critical moment in regional geopolitics.
Trump emphasized that he used “very, very special relationships” along with trade leverage and tariff threats to achieve these diplomatic breakthroughs, suggesting a transactional but effective approach to conflict resolution that has particularly benefited Pakistan’s position in South Asia.
