While India’s western land borders are now well defended, the real threats the country faces arise from the growing challenges posed by China, across its land and its maritime frontiers in the Indian Ocean, which extend from the Straits of Hormuz to its West, to the Straits of Malacca to its East. Also important, while steadily building up its presence in this region, are the challenges faced from China’s supply of conventional weapons and nuclear weapons capabilities, to Pakistan. The US, in turn, has deployed its Fifth Fleet for operations across the Indian Ocean.
There has been a continuing effort in recent years for India and the US to cooperate by strengthening maritime ties and enhancing security cooperation across the Indian Ocean. President Donald Trump, however, appears to feel very upset that India does not relate enthusiastically to everything he undertakes in US relations with Pakistan. India has also shared common interests and cooperation with littoral States in the Indian Ocean, other than Pakistan. More importantly, India has an abiding interest in the free flow of energy resources across the Indian Ocean from the Straits of Hormuz to and beyond the Straits of Malacca.
President Trump’s sudden and recent interest in relations with Pakistan appears to have been aimed at getting a huge cryptocurrency deal signed between his family’s Principal Company, the World Liberty Financial (WLF), and a newly formed “Pakistan Crypto Council”. This has happened coincidentally, just after the April 22 attacks on strategic Pakistani targets. What now appears clear is that businesses run by the Trump family have finalised agreements for undertaking lucrative mining for minerals and other projects in Pakistan.
All this was undertaken with the involvement of senior Pakistani officials, duly supervised by their ubiquitous General Asim Munir. One has heard of and seen the Pakistan military supervising civilian officials, but what is taking place now is a unique new role for the Pakistan Army Chief, of being involved in economic agreements with the United States. These agreements are said to cover the utilisation of the vast amounts of Pakistan’s mining resources. Trump has shown his appreciation for the role of General Munir in these developments by hosting an astonishing and unprecedented lunch for General Munir in Washington.
General Munir’s expectations of large amounts of US economic assistance and support are unlikely to meet Pakistan’s expectations. Moreover, any large-scale US support may not be available if Pakistan chooses not to permit US resources for projects close to its borders with China. The main Provinces requiring such resources for export will be Baluchistan and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Provinces, on Pakistan’s western borders. While the supply of US weapons and equipment to Pakistan may not commence soon, one has to bear in mind that the Chinese arms and aircraft supplies to Pakistan recently appear to be of a distinctly higher quality than supplies in the past.
This appears evident from the enhanced capabilities of some of the latest Chinese fighter aircraft supplied to Pakistan. It is an issue that is, no doubt, receiving serious attention in South Block. Constant threats of economic sanctions on every conceivable occasion, by the Trump Administration, against a number of countries, are meanwhile inevitably inviting adverse reactions from those threatened by the US.
Chinese expert Changping Zhao, who is said to have been recently released from a US Prison, has since been appointed as an Adviser for the Pakistan Project!! A high-stakes cryptocurrency deal between World Liberty Financial (WLF), a firm backed by the Trump family, and the newly formed Pakistan Crypto Council (PCC) has naturally raised eyebrows in India. This is especially as President Trump himself has pushed hard to act as mediator between India and Pakistan.
The timing of the “deal”, signed just days after the April 22, 2025, Pahalgam terror attack, has raised eyebrows in both New Delhi and Washington. “World Liberty Financial” (WLF), a large Finance and cryptocurrency company, was founded in 2024 and is no ordinary financial startup. The firm is said to be 60 per cent owned by Trump’s sons, Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., alongside their brother-in-law, Jared Kushner. These three are said to collectively hold a majority stake and are entitled to 75 per cent of all revenue from WLF’s coin sales. The company, co-chaired by Zachary Witkoff-son of Steve Witkoff, a longtime Trump associate-acts as a pioneer in blockchain innovation and integration.
On April 26, 2025, WLF signed a “Letter of Intent” with the Pakistan Crypto Council, a body established just a month earlier, under the leadership of Bilal bin Saqib, a key advisor to Pakistan’s Finance Minister. The agreement was formalised during a high-profile meeting in Islamabad, hosted by Pakistan’s Ministry of Finance, which included measures for integrating blockchain technology across Pakistan’s financial institutions. Specific goals included asset tokenisation, stablecoin development for trade and remittances, and the creation of regulatory sandboxes for DeFi pilot projects, all under the aim of promoting “financial inclusion.”
A high-stakes cryptocurrency deal between World Liberty Financial (WLF), a firm backed by the Trump family, and the newly formed Pakistan Crypto Council (PCC) has inevitably invited speculation about the U.S. President’s motivations. It is also being claimed that President Trump was being pushed to act as mediator to resolve differences between India and Pakistan.
The timing and content of the deal, signed just days after the April 22, 2025, Pahalgam terror attack, naturally raised eyebrows in New Delhi. On April 26, 2025, WLF signed a “Letter of Intent” with the Pakistan Crypto Council, a body established just a month earlier under the leadership of Bilal bin Saqib, a key advisor to Pakistan’s finance minister. The agreement was formalised during a high-profile meeting in Islamabad, which was hosted by Pakistan’s Ministry of Finance. It aimed to integrate blockchain technology across Pakistan’s financial institutions. The announcement of this “deal’ came just days after the Pahalgam attack, which killed 26 civilians and triggered India’s retaliatory Operation Sindhoor, on May 7, targeting terror camps deep inside Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir. Quite obviously, Pakistan-Trump Family cooperation promoted by Pakistan’s General Asim Munir is moving into new and uncharted waters!!
Pahalgam terror attack
On April 22, 2025, a horrific terror attack unfolded in the Baisaran Valley near Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir. Five militants armed with assault rifles ambushed a group of Hindu tourists, deliberately targeting them after verifying their religion. In the brutal shooting that followed, 26 people were killed, including a local Muslim pony-ride operator who reportedly tried to fight the attackers. Investigations led by the National Investigation Agency pointed to Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba and its affiliate The Resistance Front (TRF), with alleged support from the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).