President Donald Trump has castigated the United Nations as a feckless institution in a speech to world leaders, praising America under his leadership while warning Europe will be ruined if it doesn’t turn away from a “double-tailed monster” of ill-conceived migration and green energy policies.
His roughly hour-long speech before the UN General Assembly on Tuesday was both grievance-filled and self-congratulatory as he used the platform to applaud his second-term achievements and lament that some of his fellow world leaders’ countries were “going to hell”.
The address was the latest reminder for US allies and foes that the United States has returned to an unapologetically “America First” posture with an antagonistic view toward the United Nations.
Trump also sharply criticised the global body for inaction, saying it was filled with “empty words” that “don’t solve wars”.
“What is the purpose of the United Nations?” Trump asked.
“The UN has such tremendous potential. I’ve always said it. It has such tremendous, tremendous potential. But it’s not even coming close to living up to that potential.”
Afterward, Trump attempted to assuage fears from some diplomats by assuring the top UN leader that the US remained “100 per cent” supportive of the global body despite his earlier criticism.
“I may disagree with it sometimes, but I am so behind it because the potential for peace at this institution is great,” Trump told Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
It was another about-face after Trump offered a weave of jarring juxtapositions in his address to the assembly.
He trumpeted himself as a peacemaker and enumerated successes of his administration’s efforts in several hotspots around the globe.
At the same time, Trump heralded his decisions to order the US military to carry out strikes on Iran and more recently against alleged drug smugglers from Venezuela and argued that “globalists” are on the verge of destroying successful nations.
Trump touted his administration’s policies allowing for expanded drilling for oil and natural gas and aggressively cracking down on illegal immigration.
He warned that European nations that have more welcoming migration policies and commit to expensive energy projects aimed at reducing their carbon footprint were causing irreparable harm to their economies and cultures.
“I’m telling you that if you don’t get away from the ‘green energy’ scam, your country is going to fail,” Trump said.
“If you don’t stop people that you’ve never seen before that you have nothing in common with, your country is going to fail.”
“I love the people of Europe, and I hate to see it being devastated by energy and immigration. This double-tailed monster destroys everything in its wake, and they cannot let that happen any longer.”
Trump also addressed Russia’s war in Ukraine, once again threatening to hit Moscow with “a very strong round of powerful tariffs” if Russian President Vladimir Putin didn’t end the war.
After the speech he met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, to announce a dramatic shift in his position on the war: He said he now believes Ukraine, with the help of NATO, can win back all territory lost to Russia.
The strengthened support from Trump, if it sticks, is a huge win for Zelenskiy, who has urged the president to keep up the pressure on Putin to end his brutal war on Ukraine.
The president also pushed back on longtime American allies who are using this year’s General Assembly to spotlight the growing international campaign for recognition of a Palestinian state, a move that the US and Israel vehemently oppose.
“The rewards would be too great for Hamas terrorists,” Trump said. “This would be a reward for these horrible atrocities, including October 7.”
The president also took part in a group meeting with officials from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Turkey, Pakistan, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan for talks focused on ending the Gaza war.
“This is my most important meeting,” Trump said.
“But this is the one that’s very important to me because we’re going to end something that should have probably never started.”
The president again made clear that he wants a Nobel Peace Prize, repeating his spurious claim that he’s “ended seven wars” since he returned to office.
“Everyone says that I should get the Nobel Prize – but for me, the real prize will be the sons and daughters who live to grow up because millions of people are no longer being killed in endless wars,” Trump said in his address.
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