‘To further strengthen ties with US’: Donald Trump meets Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif, Field Marshal Asim Munir at White House

Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that Munir “is a very great guy, and so is the prime minister”.

Sharif ‘lauds Trump’s efforts to end war’ in Gaza

Discussions also turned to the Middle East, and the Pakistan government said that Sharif “lauded President Trump’s efforts to bring about an immediate end to the war in Gaza”.

The meeting took place days after Pakistan signed a mutual defense agreement with Saudi Arabia. This was the first meeting in the White House with Sharif since Trump’s first term, when he hosted then-Prime Minister Imran Khan in 2019.

However, the US President did meet Munir at the White House earlier this year, without Sharif present, which was unprecedented.

Trump said a “great leader” was coming while talking to reporters at the White House after signing several executive orders on Thursday. “In fact, we have a great leader coming, the prime minister of Pakistan coming, and the field marshal (of) Pakistan,” he said.

Sharif is in the US for the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly and will address the General Debate from the UNGA podium on Friday.

US Vice President J D Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio were also present for the meeting, according to a statement by the Pakistan Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), which added that it was held in a “pleasant atmosphere”. Closed to the press, the meeting was scheduled to start at 4.30 pm (local time) but was delayed by about 30 minutes due to Trump’s engagements. It went on for approximately an hour and 20 minutes.

Photos from after the meeting showed Sharif and Munir exchanging views with Trump. The US President was also all smiles as he flashed his signature thumbs-up sign during a group photo.

Sharif also met Trump in New York on the margins of the UNGA session on Tuesday when the latter held a multilateral meeting with leaders from Arab nations and others, including Egypt, Indonesia, Qatar, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Turkiye.

The Pakistani prime minister’s motorcade, which arrived on the premises at around 4.52 pm, was seen leaving around 6.18 pm, according to the White House pool.

Trump reiterates claim of stopping wars

In his remarks to reporters after signing the executive orders, Trump reiterated that he had stopped seven wars.

He had earlier repeated the claim in his address to world leaders at the UNGA. Pakistan has nominated Trump for the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize, in “recognition of his decisive diplomatic intervention and pivotal leadership during the recent India-Pakistan crisis”.

Since May 10, when Trump announced on social media that India and Pakistan had agreed to a “full and immediate” ceasefire after a “long night” of talks mediated by Washington, he has repeated nearly 50 times the claim that he “helped settle” the tensions between India and Pakistan.

India has denied these claims, saying that hostilities with Pakistan were paused after an understanding was reached following direct talks between the Directors General of Military Operations of the two countries.