President Trump gave his first address to the U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday, addressing the problematic states of Iran and North Korea, the conflict in Venezuela, and making a pitch for the sovereignty of nation-states.
THE WEEKLY STANDARD provided live updates from the speech, which are archived below.
10:57 a.m.: President Trump’s first address to the U.N. General Assembly was a bit of a hodge-podge. At times, it sounded as if it were a message to Americans that Trump would be defending them and their interests even if and especially when those interests contradicted the conventions of the world. (His Reagan-esque line about socialism failing Venezuela because it has been “faithfully implemented” caused a titter among some of the gathered leaders, which Trump seemed to appreciate.)
At other times, he directed strong messages to bad actors in the world like Iran, North Korea, and Venezuela. “If the righteous many do not confront the wicked few, then evil will triumph,” he said.
And still at others, Trump sounded a message of unity and global purpose.
“We will fight together, sacrifice together, and stand together for peace, for freedom, for justice, for family, for humanity, and for the almighty God who made us all,” he said at the end of his speech. “Thank you, God bless you, God bless the nations of the world, and God bless the United States of America.”
It was a message that sounded a tad incongruous next to his exhortations for nations to seek their own interests above all, but Trump’s goal was to thread this needle: to argue for the sovereignty of nation-states, which he called the “best vehicle for elevating the human condition” while arguing that doing so would achieve peace and prosperity throughout the world.— Michael Warren
10:52 a.m.: President Trump is generating a lot of attention for his remark that the United States could “totally destroy North Korea” in order to “defend the [United States] and its allies.” But Trump’s threats aren’t that big a big break from recent precedent: Back in 2016, President Obama said “there are consequences to [North Korea’s] unlawful and dangerous actions.” Just a few months earlier, directly addressing Kim Jong-un, Obama had said “we could destroy you.” And that’s not even taking into account the rhetoric about South Korea, Japan, and the United States that North Korea issues almost daily. — Ethan Epstein
10:50 a.m.: Trump repeated his old U.N. fair-share refrain: “The United States is one out of 193 countries in the United Nations, and yet we pay 22 percent of the entire budget, and more. In fact, we pay far more than anybody realizes.”
But in a change, Trump emphasized that this investment makes sense—if the U.N. can achieve the lofty things it was set up to achieve.
“If it could actually accomplish all of its stated goals, especially the goal of peace, this investment would easily be well worth it,” Trump said. “The American people hope that one day soon the United Nations can be a much more accountable and effective advocate for human dignity and freedom around the world. In the meantime, we believe that no nation should have to bear a disproportionate share of the burden militarily or financially.” —Andrew Egger
10:46 a.m.: As expected, President Trump came out swinging against North Korea’s reckless behavior early in his speech.
“No one has shown more contempt for other nations and for the well-being of their own people than the depraved regime in North Korea,” Trump said. “It is responsible for the starvation deaths of millions of North Koreans, and for the imprisonment, torture, killing and oppression of countless more.”
Trump called on U.N. countries to enforce international sanctions aimed at bringing the Kim regime to heel.
“It is an outrage that some nations would not only trade with such a regime, but would arm, supply, and financially support a country that imperils the world with nuclear conflict,” Trump said. “No nation on earth has an interest in seeing this band of criminals arm itself with nuclear weapons and missiles.”
The United States has pushed such sanctions as the only viable diplomatic method for dealing with North Korea, but their success relies on the cooperation of states like China and Russia, who have had a spotty record of enforcing them in the past. Nevertheless, Trump praised the two states for agreeing to additional sanctions when the U.N. Security Council unanimously passed them recently.
“I want to thank China and Russia for joining the vote to impose sanctions along with all the other members of the security council,” he said. “Thank you to all involved. But we must do much more.”
Trump also emphasized that America would not back away from a military conflict if North Korea’s aggressive behavior continues.
“The United States has great strength and patience, but if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea,” Trump said. “Hopefully, this will not be necessary. That’s what the United Nations is for. Let’s see how they do.” — Andrew Egger
10:44 a.m.: Trump turned to Venezuela, continuing his administration’s hard line on the Maduro regime, saying that the United States is “prepared to take further action” if the government continues to deny democracy to its people.
“We call for the full restoration of democracy and political freedoms in Venezuela,” he said. The president also briefly riled up the staid crowd at the U.N. with this observation:
“The problem in Venezuela is not that socialism has been poorly implemented. It is that socialism has been faithfully implemented.”
— Michael Warren
10:42 a.m.: After castigating North Korea over its illicit weapons tests, Trump tore into Iran, describing its government as a “corrupt dictatorship” masked by the “false guise of a democracy.”
The regime, he said, “has turned a wealthy country with a rich history and culture into an economically depleted rogue state whose chief exports are violence, bloodshed, and chaos.”
Trump said the greatest victims of Iran’s destabilizing activities are its own people.
“Rather than use its resources to improve Iranian lives, its oil profits go to fund Hezbollah and other terrorists that kill innocent Muslims, and attack their peaceful Arab,” he said, pausing, “and Israeli, neighbors.”
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu was seen nodding in approval. Trump went on to slam the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which he described as “an embarrassment to the United States.”
“We cannot abide by an agreement if it provides cover for the eventual construction of a nuclear program,” he said to some applause. “The Iran deal was one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the United States has ever entered into,” he continued.
Trump called on the regime to release unjustly detained citizens and to “stop supporting terrorists, begin serving its own people, and respect the sovereign rights of its neighbors.”
He then hearkened back to his opening theme: the power of the Iranian people against the regime.
“The entire world understands that the good people of Iran want change, and other than the vast military power of the United States, that Iran’s people are what their leaders fear the most,” he said.—Jenna Lifhits 10:28: a.m.: Even for Trump, this is tough talk about Iran. His remarks contrasting Tehran’s actions with the pan-Arab coalition who agreed to renewed action against terrorism was designed to further isolate Iran.— Michael Warren
10:20 a.m.: After a stretch in which Trump sounded like almost any other leader addressing a world body, he discussed the current threat from North Korea by saying “Rocket Man is on a suicide mission.”— Rachael Larimore
10:19 a.m.: While today’s speech is the marquee event, President Trump gave a teaser trailer with his opening remarks at the General Assembly yesterday, praising the U.N. for its “truly noble goals” but scolding that “in recent years, the United Nations has not reached its full potential because of bureaucracy and mismanagement.”
“I applaud the Secretary General for laying out a vision to reform the United Nations so that it better serves the people we all represent,” Trump said. “We support your efforts to look across the entire system and to find ways the United Nations can be better at development, management, peace, and security.”
Calling for U.N. reform to focus “more on people and less on bureaucracy” will be one of the Trump administration’s central choruses during the General Assembly.
Leaving the U.N. after his opening remarks, Trump compared his upcoming speech to the rhetoric of his presidential campaign.
“The United Nations has tremendous potential and we’ll see how it works out,” Trump said. “I think the main message is ‘Make the United Nations Great.’ Not ‘Again.’ ‘Make the United Nations Great.’” — Andrew Egger
10:15 a.m.: This may best sum up Trump’s view of America’s role in the world: “In America, we do not seek to impose our way of life on anyone.”— Michael Warren
10:13 a.m.: In his address, President Trump connected his foreign policy view back to when, well, America was great: the post-war era of Harry Truman, the beginning of the United Nations, and the Marshall Plan. He referred to the “three pillars’ of the Marshall Plan as a guide for the world: sovereignty, security, and prosperity.
“The whole world is safer when nations are strong, independent and free,” is how Trump put it.— Michael Warren
10:12: President Trump told the U.N. his three pillars of peace are: “Sovereignty, security, and prosperity for themselves, and for the world.”
And encouraged U.N. members to “respect the interests of their own people, and the rights of every other sovereign nation.”—Jim Swift
