Trump’s Nobel Peace Prize Bid Linked To Tensions With Modi Over India-Pakistan Conflict, Report Says

US President Donald Trump's pursuit of a Nobel Peace Prize may have played a role in recent strains between him and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to a report by The New York Times on Saturday. Trump reportedly took credit for halting military hostilities between India and Pakistan in May and sought India's backing for a Nobel nomination during a phone call with Modi on June 17.

The call came after Trump repeatedly claimed he had "solved" the conflict triggered when India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7 to target terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan in retaliation for the Pahalgam terror attack. Despite pushback from New Delhi, Trump has continued to assert that he played a key role in stopping the clashes.

During the June 17 call, Trump reportedly expressed pride in ending the escalation and mentioned that Pakistan was planning to nominate him for a Nobel Peace Prize. According to the Times, "the not-so-subtle implication...was that Mr Modi should do the same."

Modi, however, told Trump that the US had no role in the ceasefire, emphasizing that the matter was resolved directly between India and Pakistan. The report added that Trump largely dismissed Modi's comments. The disagreement-and Modi's refusal to support Trump's Nobel ambitions-has reportedly contributed significantly to the souring relationship between the two leaders.

Indian officials did not respond to the report. Observers familiar with the matter noted a statement by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri on June 18, which recounted the call. Misri confirmed that Modi had made it clear that India and Pakistan's decision to halt hostilities in May was made solely through direct military-to-military talks, without any US mediation.

Trump had initiated the call after the two leaders were unable to meet on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Canada due to his early return to the US. The 35-minute conversation reportedly included Modi asserting that "India has never accepted mediation, does not and will never do so." Modi also clarified that during the four-day conflict, issues such as a potential India-US trade deal or US mediation were not discussed "at no time [or] at any level."

The White House did not acknowledge the call, and Trump did not post about it on his social media accounts. India has consistently maintained that it does not accept third-party mediation in its disputes with Pakistan. Historically, the US has intervened to ease India-Pakistan tensions on several occasions, including during the Kargil conflict in 1999 and after the Pulwama attack in 2019.

Trump was the first to publicly announce the cessation of hostilities between India and Pakistan on May 10, and an official American readout described it as a ceasefire brokered by the US. Since then, Trump has continued to claim credit for ending the conflict, asserting that he even used the threat of halting trade with both countries to achieve the ceasefire.

In the weeks following the June 17 call, Trump imposed a 25% reciprocal tariff on Indian goods, followed by an additional 25% punitive tariff over India's purchase of Russian oil, further straining bilateral ties. Trump has also maintained his claims of deserving a Nobel Peace Prize for efforts to end global conflicts. In June, he wrote on social media: "I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize for stopping the war between India and Pakistan. No, I won't get a Nobel Peace Prize no matter what I do."