'Trump desperate for a foreign policy success,' expert says on US President's claim of ending India-Pak conflict

New Delhi: Foreign policy expert Mahesh Sachdev on Wednesday said that US President Donald Trump appears "desperate" to succeed in the foreign policies laid down by his administration, noting that declining popularity and mounting domestic and international challenges have caused such desperation by the US President.

Speaking to on the US President's State of the Union address in the Congress, Sachdev stated that Trump reiterating claims of having stopped the India-Pakistan conflict, which arose in the aftermath of the Pahalgam Terror attacks last year, comes at a time when President Trump's popularity appears to be declining sharply as the midterm elections approach in the US.

During his address, Trump repeated his claim that he had "stopped eight wars" and took credit for halting the potential conflict between India and Pakistan in May last year.


However, India has repeatedly denied any third-party involvement in the agreement to cease hostilities with Pakistan, maintaining that the request to end military operations had come from Pakistan's Director General of Military Operations.

"I think the context is pretty clear through this assertion as well as the denials. But the fact that this reiteration takes place against the falling popularity of President Trump, which seems to have declined precipitously as the midterm election looms, makes the President a bit more desperate to claim foreign policy successes, which have been rare and few in between despite his claims to the contrary," the expert stated.

According to Sachdev, Trump's efforts to end the Ukraine-Russia war, not yielding any breakthrough, slowed progress towards a lasting peace settlement in Gaza, and stalled negotiations with Iran, have added to the US President's troubles.

"All that put together makes him more desperate for a foreign policy success," Sachdev said.

The expert noted that Trump's address comes at a time when it carries heightened political weight, as the US President does not participate in day-to-day Congressional deliberations.

He noted that the context of the US President's address comes during a very "turbulent" time, pointing to the recent US Supreme Court verdict invalidating Trump's tariff strategy, rising geopolitical tensions and the looming midterm elections in November.