Washington, August 18, 2025 – US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington closely monitors the situation between India and Pakistan “every single day”, warning that ceasefires can collapse without warning. His remarks came in a weekend interview with NBC’s Meet The Press, where he stressed that peace requires more than temporary truces.
“The only way to have a ceasefire is for both sides to agree to stop firing at one another. And the Russians just haven’t agreed to that. Beyond that, one of the complications about ceasefires is they have to be maintained, which is very difficult. I mean, every single day we keep an eye on what’s happening between Pakistan and India, what’s happening between Cambodia and Thailand,” Rubio said.
Rubio, while mainly discussing Ukraine, drew parallels with other global conflicts. “Ceasefires can fall apart very quickly, especially after a three-and-a-half-year war like what we’re facing now. What we’re aiming for is not just a permanent ceasefire, but a peace deal—so there’s not a war now and not a war in the future.”
Trump’s repeated claims
In a separate Fox Business interview, Rubio also credited former President Donald Trump with helping to avert conflict in South Asia. “We’ve seen it in Cambodia and Thailand. We’ve seen it in India-Pakistan. We’ve seen it in Rwanda and the DRC,” Rubio said, calling Trump’s emphasis on peace “a blessing.”
Trump has repeatedly claimed he personally mediated a ceasefire between India and Pakistan during Operation Sindoor, which saw a sharp escalation in May. Since announcing on May 10 that both countries had agreed to a “full and immediate” ceasefire after a “long night” of US-brokered talks, Trump has repeated the claim at least 40 times, often tying it to promises of expanded US trade with both countries.
At a press briefing with Russian President Vladimir Putin last Friday, Trump again boasted that he “stopped a war” between India and Pakistan. “They were shooting down airplanes already, and that would have been maybe nuclear. I was able to get it done… wars are very bad, and if you can avoid them, you should. I seem to have an ability to end them,” Trump said.
India denies third-party role
India, however, has strongly rejected Trump’s version of events. Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Parliament that no foreign leader pressured New Delhi to stop Operation Sindoor. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar further clarified that the decision to halt military action was unilateral and “categorically not linked to trade incentives,” dismissing Trump’s suggestion of American mediation.
The conflicting narratives highlight the sensitivity of outside involvement in India-Pakistan relations, where both sides remain wary of international mediation. For Washington, Rubio’s comments signal continued concern about stability in South Asia even as US foreign policy remains preoccupied with Ukraine, Russia, and China.