Fact Check: Did Trump Say 'Let Them Fight’? He Did, But In 2019, And Not About India-Pakistan Conflict
A video of US President Donald Trump is circulating widely on social media, purportedly showing him encouraging India and Pakistan to continue fighting amid recent military escalations.
The Verdict [Misleading]
A 2019 clip of Donald Trump discussing Taliban-ISIS clashes is being falsely shared as him endorsing the ongoing conflict between India and Pakistan.
What is the claim?
A video of U.S. President Donald Trump is circulating widely on social media, purportedly showing him encouraging India and Pakistan to continue fighting amid recent military escalations, including reported drone attacks, cross-border shelling, and alleged missile attacks.
In the video, Trump is heard saying, “... and they're fighting each other. I said, ‘Why don't you let them fight?’ Why are we getting in the middle of it? I said, ‘Let them fight. Sir, we wanna do it.’ They go in, and they end up fighting both of them. It's the craziest thing I've ever seen. Let them fight.”
The video (archived here and here) has been shared with captions such as, “'Let Them Fight' – Trump on India and Pakistan.” Another version of the post (archived here) reads, “Trump is right. Let India cleanse Pakistan of terrorism!” Additional archive links of similar posts are available here and here.
India launched “Operation Sindoor” on May 7, 2025, targeting nine terror camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in response to a recent terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Baisaran Valley that killed 26 people. Since then, tensions have escalated, with both nations reportedly exchanging cross-border fire.
However, we found that the viral video is old and unrelated to the ongoing India-Pakistan conflict.
What are the facts?
Using reverse image search, we identified a longer version of the video posted by the Trump White House Archive on January 3, 2019 (archived here), titled “President Trump Leads a Cabinet Meeting.” The footage seen in the viral clip appears at the 1:17:12 mark.
In the original video, Trump says, “... and they're fighting each other. I said, ‘Why don't you let them fight?’ Why are we getting in the middle of it? I said, ‘Let them fight. They're both our enemies. Let them fight.’ ‘Sir, we want to do it.’ They go in and they end up fighting both of them. It's the craziest thing I've ever seen.”
Notably, a key line—“They're both our enemies. Let them fight.”—was edited out of the viral video.
Moreover, just before making those remarks, Trump was referring to the Taliban and the Islamic State (ISIS), not India and Pakistan. The full context confirms that Trump was discussing conflicts in Afghanistan.
The official transcript of the speech, available in the Trump White House archives, corroborates this context. During the meeting, Trump was asked about Afghanistan and the Taliban, including the potential roles of countries such as India. In response, he said, “But why isn't Russia there? Why isn't India there? Why isn't Pakistan there? Why are we there, and we're 6,000 miles away? But I don't mind. We want to help our people. We want to help other nations. You do have terrorists, mostly Taliban, but ISIS. I mean, I'll give you an example. So, the Taliban is our enemy. ISIS is our enemy. We have an area that I brought up with our generals four or five weeks ago, where Taliban is here, ISIS is here, and they're fighting each other.”
This statement precedes the excerpt seen in the viral video, making it clear that Trump was referring to ISIS and the Taliban, not India and Pakistan. At no point in the video does he mention the India-Pakistan conflict.
Ongoing India-Pakistan clash
Trump has commented on the current India-Pakistan tensions. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, he described the situation as a long-standing, historical dispute in the region. After India’s retaliatory strikes, Trump said, “It’s a shame, we just heard about it,” and added, “I just hope it ends very quickly.” On May 7, he remarked, “They've gone tit-for-tat, so hopefully they can stop now,” noting that he knew leaders on both sides “very well” and expressing a willingness to help: “If I can do anything to help, I will be there.”
The verdict
A 2019 video of Donald Trump referring to clashes between ISIS and the Taliban in Afghanistan has been misleadingly edited and circulated with the false claim that he was speaking about the current conflict between India and Pakistan. The video is not related to recent events and has been taken out of context.
This report first appeared on logicallyfacts.com, and has been republished on ABP Live as part of a special arrangement. Apart from the headline, no changes have been made in the report by ABP Live.
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