As Donald Trump Hosts Pak Army Chief For Lunch, What The White House Said
US President Donald Trump hosted Pakistan's army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir for a special luncheon at the White House on Wednesday. The meeting comes at a time when Israel is intensifying its military strikes on Iran, with whom Pakistan shares a nearly 1,000-kilometre border. The United States, which backs Israel's actions may also join them in ensuring they put an end to Tehran's nuclear ambitions.
THE IRAN FACTOR
History and geography have once again led Washington to Islamabad, and more importantly, Rawalpindi's doorstep. Two US aircraft carriers - the USS Carl Vinson and the USS Harry S Truman - are stationed in the Arabian Sea, and a fleet of B-2 Stealth bombers are lined-up at the US' Indian Ocean air force base in Diego Garcia - all awaiting orders from their Commander-and-Chief - President Trump.
Speaking about the US making a military move on Iran hours before meeting Pakistan's army chief, President Trump said at a White House press briefing that "I may do it, I may not do it - nobody knows what I'm going to do." But any prolonged efforts against Iran, would mean the United States would need a land access to the enemy country - something Pakistan can provide.
PAK ARMY CHIEF WANTS 'NOBEL PRIZE FOR TRUMP'
Meanwhile, a statement issued by the White House Deputy Press Secretary, Anna Kelly, mentioned that the reason President Trump is meeting Pakistan's army chief is because the latter has called for a Nobel Prize to be given to the US President for averting a "nuclear war between India and Pakistan" last month.
#WATCH | Pakistan Army Chief, Asim Munir, reaches The White House in Washington, DC to meet the US President Donald Trump. pic.twitter.com/jLqGF8MMZY
— ANI (@ANI) June 18, 2025
"President Trump will host Field Marshal Munir after he called for the President to be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for preventing a nuclear war between India and Pakistan," Ms Kelly said in her statement. Shortly thereafter, Donald Trump said that he "loves Pakistan", but was quick to balance it by saying he thinks "Modi is fantastic" too.
"Well, I stopped the war between Pakistan - I love Pakistan - I think Modi is a fantastic man, I spoke to him last night. We are going to make a trade deal with Modi of India... And I stopped the war between Pakistan and India. This man (possibly referring to Asim Munir) was extremely influential in stopping it from the Pakistani side, Modi from the India side, and others. And they were going at it, they are both nuclear countries. I got it stopped," Mr Trump claimed for the nth time -- a claim India and Prime Minister Modi have rejected each time the US President mentioned it, the latest being Wednesday morning.
A BIT OF SELF-PROMOTION
Both Donald Trump and Asim Munir have indulged in self-promotion in their own ways. While Trump has been promoting himself as a "peace-maker" and a "deal-broker" globally, be it the Russia-Ukraine war, or the Israel-Gaza conflict, or most recently, the military exchange between India and Pakistan in the wake of the Pakistan-linked terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam.
Asim Munir, on the other hand, who has been promoted to the topmost army rank of Field Marshal by Pakistan's PM Shehbaz Sharif, has been promoting himself by meeting several Heads of States, including Turkey, Azerbaijan, Iran, and now the United States of America. These meetings between Heads of States are usually for civilian government leadership, not military generals, but Pakistan, which has a history of military coups and dictatorships, has broken this convention several times.
PAK ARMY CHIEFS AND US PRESIDENTS - A BRIEF HISTORY
In the past too, Pakistan's military dictators - Zia-ul-Haq and Pervez Musharraf - have met US Presidents and dined with them. During General Zia-ul-Haq's regime, Pakistan became an ally of the United States to counter the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, while under Pervez Musharraf's regime, Pakistan aided the US' efforts in Afghanistan in America's "war against terror".
This time the US has its eyes set on Iran - another neighbour of Pakistan, and the timing of President Trump's lunch with Pakistan's army chief is being watched keenly by China and the rest of Asia. China considers Iran an ally and has expressed its support to the Khamenei regime in recent times. Pakistan considers china an "unshakable" friend and an "all-weather ally". Islamabad also detests Israel, so much so, that it does not even recognize the country, and reports suggest that Pakistan has even threatened to "nuke Israel" if Israel plans to do so the Tehran.
Wednesday's meeting between Donald Trump and Asim Munir is a closed-door discussion, the White House has said. It is unclear whether a statement from either country will be issued at the end of today's talks.
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