<p>US President Donald Trump is scheduled to host Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff, General Asim Munir, for a luncheon at the White House on Wednesday. This high-level meeting, set to take place in the Cabinet Room at 1 pm, follows closely on the heels of a recent military flare-up between India and Pakistan and rising instability in the Middle East.</p> <p>The development was confirmed through an official advisory released from Washington, news agency PTI reported. According to Dawn, the invitation has been hailed by Pakistani officials as a significant diplomatic milestone, particularly given that it is rare for a serving Pakistan Army chief to be invited to such an event. Historically, only Ayub Khan, Zia ul-Haq, and Pervez Musharraf received similar treatment while also holding presidential office.</p> <p>Speaking to reporters in Washington ahead of the lunch with Asim Munir, the US president said, “I stopped the war between India and Pakistan. I love Pakistan, and Modi is a fantastic man. I spoke to him last night, and we will make a trade deal with Modi of India.”</p> <p>Trump credited General Munir as playing a key role in calming the situation from the Pakistani side, while mentioning PM Modi's role on behalf of India. “This man (Asim Munir) was extremely influential in stopping it from the Pakistani side, and PM Modi from the Indian side,” Trump said.</p> <p>“They were going at it, and both are nuclear countries,” Trump added. “I stopped a war between two major nations,” he reiterated.</p> <p>Trump had cut short his visit to Canada’s Kananaskis, where the G7 Leaders’ Summit was underway, to return to Washington on Tuesday morning amid escalating tensions involving Israel and Iran.</p> <h3><strong>India does not and will never accept mediation: PM Modi to Trump</strong></h3> <p>According to Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, Trump had called Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his return and enquired if Modi could make a stopover in the US on his way back. However, the prime minister declined, citing prior commitments.</p> <p>During the conversation, Modi informed Trump that the cessation of hostilities between India and Pakistan was the result of direct military-level discussions, not external mediation. “India does not and will never accept mediation,” Misri quoted Modi as saying. He clarified that the talks between the two militaries had been initiated at Islamabad’s request.</p> <p>This comes in contrast to Trump’s earlier assertions that he played a mediatory role in the ceasefire.</p> <h3><strong>Munir’s Washington Visit Amid Post-Conflict Optics</strong></h3> <p>General Munir’s visit to the US follows a four-day military conflict between India and Pakistan triggered by the Pahalgam terror attack. India had launched <a title="Operation Sindoor" href="https://ift.tt/Kb1kSw0" data-type="interlinkingkeywords">Operation Sindoor</a> on 7 May, targeting terror camps across the Line of Control. The clashes concluded on 10 May after the Directors General of Military Operations from both countries agreed to halt military actions.</p> <p>New Delhi maintains that Pakistan sought an end to hostilities after India’s retaliatory offensive. Munir, meanwhile, has denied any Pakistani involvement in the Pahalgam incident and accused India of trying to enforce a “new normal” by breaching international borders. “Pakistan had forcefully rejected” this notion, he was quoted as saying by Dawn.</p> <p>A key outcome of Munir’s US visit has been the strengthening of counterterrorism cooperation between Washington and Islamabad, as per news agency PTI. </p> <p>During an interaction with the Pakistani-American community at the Four Seasons Hotel in Washington’s Georgetown, Munir called on India to engage “as a civilised nation” rather than pursuing regional dominance, Dawn reported. The event also saw protests by supporters of <a title="Imran Khan" href="https://ift.tt/LSkgrX3" data-type="interlinkingkeywords">Imran Khan</a>’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, demanding political reforms and the release of detained leaders.</p> <p>Munir also expressed Pakistan’s “clear and strong” backing for Iran in its war with Israel, while simultaneously supporting US-led efforts to de-escalate the conflict. “We want this war to end immediately,” he said.</p>
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