Trump-Munir meet embarrassing for Pak; PM not invited: Def Secy
Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh described the rare meeting between US President Donald Trump and Pakistan Army Chief General Asim Munir at the White House on Wednesday as both unusual and embarrassing for Pakistan, noting that the country's Prime Minister was not invited to the meeting.
News Arena Network - Islamabad - UPDATED: June 20, 2025, 09:00 PM - 2 min read
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In a candid statement, Defence Secretary of India, Rajesh Kumar Singh, described the recent Trump-Munir meeting at the White House as both surprising and deeply embarrassing for Pakistan. The meeting, held between former US President Donald Trump and Pakistan Army chief General Asim Munir, occurred without any invitation extended to Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, highlighting what Singh called a 'structurally imbalanced' political system in the neighbouring country.
Speaking in a podcast interview with national media, Singh remarked, “I don’t have a great opinion on this Trump-Munir meeting. It must be an embarrassment to any country when the military chief gets invited and the Prime Minister is nowhere to be seen. It’s a very strange thing.” The meeting featured Lt Gen Asim Malik, who also serves as Pakistan’s National Security Advisor, but no civilian leader from the Pakistani government was present — a stark reflection of how deeply entrenched the Pak Army is in the governance of the state.
Defence Secretary of India Rajesh Kumar Singh.
The encounter marked a rare moment in US-Pak ties, as it is uncommon for a sitting or former US President to host a military leader of another country in such a prominent and exclusive manner. This was the first such high-profile military-level engagement between the two nations since India's Operation Sindoor, which was launched in response to the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22 that claimed the lives of 26 Indian tourists in Jammu & Kashmir.
According to White House sources, Trump agreed to host Asim Munir following the general’s endorsement of the former president’s name for a Nobel Peace Prize nomination. Munir credited Trump with preventing what could have escalated into a nuclear conflict between India and Pakistan. Trump has on multiple occasions claimed he mediated between the two countries during periods of heightened tension, particularly after the Pahalgam attack.
However, India has firmly rejected such assertions. Hours before the Trump-Munir meeting, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a 35-minute phone call with Trump to clarify that the ceasefire achieved following the May 7–10 military standoff was a result of direct military-level dialogue between the Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) of both countries. New Delhi reiterated that no third-party mediation was involved.
Commenting further on Pakistan's internal structure, Singh noted, “I’ve always found it strange that this gentleman [Munir] chairs an investment facilitation council that takes economic decisions. It’s a weird, structurally imbalanced state where the military essentially has the first claim on national resources.” The India-Pak ties remain tense and have only deteriorated further after the Pahalgam attack, India’s diplomatic actions, and the suspension of elements of the Indus Waters Treaty. Despite international attempts to bring the two nuclear-armed neighbours to the table, India has repeatedly maintained that terror and talks cannot go together. New Delhi continues to call out Islamabad for harbouring terror outfits and allowing cross-border terrorism to operate from its soil.
Defence Secretary Singh concluded by underlining that India must maintain strong deterrence capabilities to safeguard its sovereignty and national security, especially in the face of Pakistan's military-dominated political landscape and its continued support for terror networks.
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