Trump, Pakistani prime minister discuss Afghanistan

WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump met with Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan at the White House on Monday to discuss how to end the long war in Afghanistan. The president made it clear he wanted to find a peaceful solution to the war that has entangled the United States for almost two decades. “I could win that war in a week,” Trump told reporters. “I just don’t want to kill 10 million people.”

Trump and Khan have criticized each other in the past, but this time their interaction was far more cordial. The Pakistani prime minister also wanted to stop the bloodshed in the country next door. “It’s the closest we’ve been to a peace deal,” Khan said. “And I hope in the coming days we will be able to urge the Taliban to speak to the Afghan government and come to a political solution.”

Trump also addressed Pakistan’s long-standing battle with India over the disputed region of Kashmir, which heated up in February following airstrikes in the area. He claimed Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had asked him to mediate the dispute, which would be a significant shift in U.S. policy. “No such request has been made by PM @narendramodi to US President,” tweeted Raveesh Kumar, spokesman for India’s Ministry of External Affairs. “It has been India’s consistent position that all outstanding issues with Pakistan are discussed only bilaterally.”