Imran-Trump meeting

Trump says that he heard a very aggressive statement

US President Donald Trump repeated on Monday his offer to mediate between Pakistan and India on the Kashmir issue as he met with Prime Minister Imran Khan for the second time in two months.

In the two months between the meetings at the White House and now the UN, however, the situation has changed dramatically, with some initially claiming Trump’s initial offer was a ‘misspeak’ that forced a panicked Indian government to hastily end Indian Occupied Kashmir’s autonomy and initiate a crippling communications blackout that has now lasted for over six weeks.

It is now clear that it wasn’t a misspeak. It is less clear what the US will do to help mitigate Kashmiris’ suffering under the punishing rule of the far-right Bharatiya Janata Party and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who Trump has previously referred to as a “loyal friend of the US” and whose rule of India — where fascist Hindutva enforcers are free to lynch minorities without fear of reprisal — was called “a truly exceptional job for India and all of the Indian people” by the US President just a day ago at the “Howdy, Modi” event in Houston.

Trump also attempted to distance himself from Modi’s sabre-rattling in Texas, claiming, “I heard a very aggressive statement yesterday [that] I didn’t know I was going to hear.”

It was also welcoming that despite some critical words a day earlier from PM Imran about the famously thin-skinned Trump’s role in the failure of Afghan peace talks, Trump actually seemed warm during their public interaction.

He claimed to “trust Pakistan” more than his predecessors, adding, “They didn’t know what they were doing.”

Of Kashmir, Trump said he wants “everybody to be treated well” and “there is always a solution.”

Meanwhile, the Pakistani Premier was blunt in his assessment of Trump’s accomplishments, or lack thereof, in Houston.

“When you’re supposed to meet Narendra Modi, I would have [suggested he be asked] to at least lift the siege,” he told Trump, adding that “It’s a huge humanitarian crisis.”

As Imran said, “We look to the US to put out flames in the world”.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 25^th, 2019.

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