CLAIM

US President Donald Trump says in State of the Union address that PM Shehbaz would’ve died without his involvement in the Pakistan-India May 2025 conflict

RATING JUSTIFICATION

The iVerify Pakistan team investigated this content and determined that it is misleading.

To reach this conclusion, the team reviewed the original livestream of Trump’s 2026 State of the Union address and cross-checked his past statements.

Multiple Indian media outlets, users and propaganda accounts shared a clip of United States President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address on February 25, 2026, claiming he said that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif would have died if not for his involvement in the May 2025 Pakistan-India conflict. However, his words are being intentionally misinterpreted.

Trump’s State of the Union address lasted one hour and 47 minutes — the longest before a joint session of Congress in at least six decades, according to the American Presidency Project.

Trump also briefly brought South Asia into the address, highlighting his peacemaking role in ending the May 2025 war between Pakistan and India, claiming that his efforts “saved millions” of lives by preventing the conflict from turning nuclear.

HOW IT STARTED

On Feb 25, an Indian propagandist account shared a video of Trump’s address on X, with the following caption: “‘Had I not intervened, the Pakistani PM would have been killed by India during Operation Sindoor’ - President Trump. This might finally be the moment when the Indian opposition stops believing Trump.”

The post gained 472,000 views.

WIONews foreign affairs editor Sidhant Sibal also shared the same clip with a similar caption, garnering 145,000 views.

Indian News outlet CNN-News 18 shared the viral clip on YouTube with the following caption: “Trump Says Pak PM Sharif ‘Would’ve Died’ Without Him | Ceasefire Hero Moment”

The transcript of the viral clip is provided below:

“Pakistan and India would have been a nuclear war. Thirty-five million people said the prime minister of Pakistan would have died if it were not for my involvement.”

Online Indian newspaper The Print also shared the same clip on YouTube with the following caption: “‘Pakistan PM would have died if not for my intervention’, says Trump raising Op Sindoor”

Indian media outlet Beats in Brief also shared a similar post about Trump’s remark on X, gaining 39,000 views.

Similarly, Indian newspaper Deccan Herald published a news report titled “‘Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif would have died’: US President Donald Trump’s big claim on India’s Operation Sindoor”.

As per the news report, Trump claimed PM Shehbaz would have been killed if not for his intervention.

The same video was shared by other Indian users and accounts on X, as can be seen here, here, here, here, here and here accumulating over 37,000 views.

METHODOLOGY

A fact-check was initiated to determine the veracity of the claim due to its virality and keen public interest in Trump’s role in the India-Pakistan conflict.

Upon examining the clip from Trump’s full speech, uploaded by CNBC Television on YouTube, at the 1:48:32 mark, it is clear that the interpretation of the remark “Pakistan PM would have died” hinges on a matter of pause and punctuation.

The transcript of the remark is the following: “Pakistan and India would have been a nuclear war. Thirty-five million people said the prime minister of Pakistan would have died if it were not for my involvement.”

The above can be written in three ways, with different meanings depending on where the punctuation or pause is placed.

Version 1: “Thirty-five million people said, the prime minister of Pakistan would have died if it were not for my involvement.”

Version 2: “Thirty-five million people, said the prime minister of Pakistan, would have died if it were not for my involvement.”

The first version, which was understood by the Indian users and outlets sharing the clip, implies that according to 35m people, PM Shehbaz would’ve died if it weren’t for Trump’s involvement in the conflict.

The second version indicates Trump was quoting PM Shehbaz as saying that 35m people would have died without his involvement.

Trump’s past comments were checked to determine the meaning of his remark. An investigation showed that during his Board of Peace meeting on Feb 19, 2026, he made similar remarks about PM Shehbaz’s praise for him, highlighting that the premier had credited him with saving millions of lives.

As per the Express Tribune, the US president said while addressing the premier: “I got to meet the prime minister and he said in front of our Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, he said: ‘Do you know nobody knows but I believe that President Trump saved 25m lives when he stopped the war between us and India.’ You made that statement.”

His previous remarks make it clear that he was again referring to the prime minister saying that millions of people would have died if Trump had not intervened.

Notably, Trump has repeatedly mentioned PM Shehbaz’s sentiments in the past, crediting him for saving millions of lives. In January 2026, he said the prime minister’s remarks were an honour for him.

Furthermore, it was found that some Indian news outlets also covered Trump’s remarks in the correct context.

Times of India published a news report with the following headline: “Pakistan PM would have died… ’: Donald Trump misspeaks in State of the Union address - what he meant”

As per the news report, Trump claimed that PM Shehbaz told him that 35m people would have died if he had not intervened.

India Today also published a similar news report with the following headline: “Trump’s new India-Pak truce claim, says Sharif told him 35 million would’ve died”.

Lastly, Sibal deleted his previous tweet about Trump’s claim and subsequently shared another tweet, correcting himself to reflect that PM Shehbaz credited Trump with saving 35m lives.

“‘Pakistan and India would have been a nuclear war. Thirty-five million people, said the prime minister of Pakistan, would have died if it were not for my involvement’, Trump during the state of the union address,” read the caption of the new post.

WIONews also shared a news report with the following headline: “Did Trump say ‘Pak PM would’ve died if not for me’ during India-Pakistan war?”

The outlet itself thus addressed the confusion about Trump’s remarks and provided clarity about them.

FACT-CHECK STATUS: MISLEADING

The claim that a viral video shows US President Donald Trump saying PM Shehbaz would have died if not for his involvement in last year’s Pakistan-India conflict is misleading.

Trump’s previous remarks regarding the conflict and the number of lives he saved with the ceasefire along with some Indian outlets relaying the US president’s quote with the correct meaning are evidence that his comments were not intended in the manner that Indian users, propaganda accounts and certain media outlets interpreted them.

EVIDENCE AND REFERENCES

Feb 25, 2026, CNBC Television YouTube video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E-2SPzBHWc0

Feb 20, 2026, Express Tribune news report:
https://tribune.com.pk/story/2593579/trump-heaps-praise-on-pm-cdf-at-maiden-peace-board-meeting

Feb 25, 2026, Times of India news report:
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/pakistan-pm-would-have-died-donald-trump-misspeaks-in-state-of-the-union-address-what-he-meant/articleshow/128769542.cms

Feb 25, 2026 India Today news report:
https://www.indiatoday.in/world/story/pak-pm-wouldve-died-if-not-for-me-trumps-fresh-india-pak-ceasefire-claim-2873916-2026-02-25

Feb 25, 2026, WIONews report:
https://www.wionews.com/world/-pak-pm-would-ve-died-if-not-for-me-trump-reiterates-claim-of-ending-india-pakistan-war-1771990679386