U.S. President Donald Trump continues to claim he has ended eight wars this year, but that is exaggerated. His meeting this week with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu highlights that far more work remains before any declaration of an end to the war in Gaza.
Meanwhile, fresh fighting broke out in recent weeks between Thailand and Cambodia, and between Congolese forces and Rwanda-backed rebels. And one conflict that Trump has claimed to end has never been a war at all.
Here’s a closer look:
The current ceasefire and hostage deal is a major achievement, but Israel has said it won’t move into the truce’s more difficult second phase until the remains of the last hostage are released from Gaza. And Hamas has threatened to halt the agreement because it says Israel isn't allowing enough aid into Gaza and continues deadly strikes on Palestinians there.
The path to a permanent end to the war, let alone a two-state solution for the Palestinians, is long and complicated. Issues ahead include disarming Hamas, creating and deploying an international security force, determining Gaza’s future governance and further withdrawing Israeli forces from the devastated territory.
With the Trump-Netanyahu meeting, Washington wants to create fresh momentum for next steps in the U.S.-brokered truce that took effect on Oct. 10 and is largely holding.
Trump is credited with ending the 12-day war. In June, Israel launched attacks on Iran’s nuclear program and military leadership, saying it wanted to stop Tehran from building a nuclear weapon. Iran has denied it was trying to do that.
Trump negotiated a ceasefire after directing U.S. warplanes to strike Iran’s Fordo, Isfahan and Natanz nuclear sites.
Evelyn Farkas, executive director of Arizona State University’s McCain Institute, has said that Trump should get credit for ending the war, adding that “it didn’t have any real end in sight before President Trump got involved and gave them an ultimatum.”
Lawrence Haas, a senior fellow for U.S. foreign policy at the American Foreign Policy Council, agreed the U.S. was instrumental but characterized the ceasefire as a temporary respite from the ongoing “day-to-day cold war."
Mediation efforts, which do not directly involve the United States, have stalled in what is best described as heightened tensions, not war.
The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile has caused friction between Ethiopia and Egypt and Sudan since the project was announced more than a decade ago. The dam was inaugurated in September.
Egypt and Sudan oppose the dam. Egyptian agriculture relies on the river almost entirely. Sudan fears flooding and wants to protect its own dams.
During his first term, Trump tried to broker a deal between Ethiopia and Egypt. He could not get the countries to agree.
The April killing of tourists in Indian-controlled Kashmir pushed India and Pakistan closer to war than they had been in years, but a ceasefire was reached.
Trump has claimed that the U.S. brokered the ceasefire, which he said came about in part because he offered trade concessions. Pakistan thanked Trump. India denied Trump’s claims, saying there was no conversation between the U.S. and India on trade in regards to the ceasefire.
Haas and Farkas have said they believe the U.S. deserves some credit for helping stop the fighting. “Again, I’m not sure whether you would define that as a full-blown war,” Farkas added.
The White House lists the conflict between Serbia and Kosovo as one that Trump resolved. But there has been no threat of a war between the neighbors during Trump’s second term or any significant contribution from him this year to improve relations.
Kosovo is a former Serbian province that declared independence in 2008. Tensions have persisted but never to the point of war, mostly because NATO-led peacekeepers have been deployed in Kosovo, which has been recognized by more than 100 countries.
During his first term, Trump negotiated a wide-ranging deal between the countries, but much of what was agreed on was never carried out.
Trump has played a key role in peace efforts between the African neighbors, but he is not alone and the conflict is far from over.
Eastern Congo, rich in minerals, this year saw the return of the M23 rebel group. It is backed by Rwanda, which claims it is protecting territorial interests and that some of those who participated in the 1994 Rwandan genocide are working with the Congolese army.
In June, the Congolese and Rwandan foreign ministers signed a peace deal at the White House. And in early December, the countries' presidents signed a peace deal as Trump looked on. But the M23 has said it would not abide by an agreement that did not directly involve it. Days after the latest signing, the rebels seized another eastern Congo city before claiming to withdraw.
There is also a separate Qatar-facilitated deal between Congo and M23, but the parties have accused each other of violating the ceasefire.
In August, Trump hosted the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan at the White House, where they signed a deal aimed at ending a decades-long conflict. The countries signed agreements intended to reopen key transportation routes and reaffirm their commitment to signing a peace treaty. The text of the treaty was initialed by foreign ministers, which indicates preliminary approval. But the leaders have yet to sign the treaty and parliaments have yet to ratify it.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have fought over territory since the early 1990s, when ethnic Armenian forces took control of the Karabakh province, known internationally as Nagorno-Karabakh, and nearby territories. In 2020, Azerbaijan’s military recaptured broad swaths of territory. Russia brokered a truce, but in September 2023, Azerbaijani forces launched a lightning blitz to retake remaining portions.
The two countries have worked toward normalizing ties ever since.
Officials from Thailand and Cambodia credit Trump with pushing the Asian neighbors to agree to a ceasefire in this summer’s brief border conflict. But fighting flared again in recent weeks.
Cambodia and Thailand have clashed over their shared border. Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim pressed for an unconditional ceasefire, but there was little headway until Trump intervened. Trump said he warned the Thai and Cambodian leaders that the U.S. would not move forward with trade agreements if hostilities continued.
Ken Lohatepanont, a political analyst and University of Michigan doctoral candidate, has said that Trump’s decision to "condition a successful conclusion to these talks on a ceasefire likely played a significant role in ensuring that both sides came to the negotiating table when they did.”
A more detailed October agreement followed, also under Trump's pressure. But heavy fighting broke out in early December. A new ceasefire agreement was signed on Dec. 27.
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Illumination flares fired by Thai military forces shine in Poipet, Cambodia, as seen from Sa Kaeo, Thailand, on Friday, Dec. 26, 2025, following clashes between Thai and Cambodian soldiers. (AP Photo/Wason Wanichakorn)
A woman tries to recover a carpet after overnight rainfall flooded a beachside tent camp in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Mohammad Jahjouh)
