At the United Nations General Assembly in New York on September 24, US President Donald Trump fired sharp criticisms at the organization itself and its key initiatives, including efforts to combat climate change. He didn’t hold back on his close ally, either, during a fiery address that drew quick rebuttals from other world leaders.
Trump kicked off by questioning the UN’s very existence. “What is the purpose of the UN?” he asked the packed hall. “All they seem to do is write a really strongly worded letter and then never follow that letter up. It’s empty words, and empty words don’t solve war.” He argued the body falls short of its potential, calling it inefficient and ineffective.
Things didn’t go smoothly for Trump right from the start. As he rode the escalator to the stage, it suddenly halted, forcing a brief pause. Then, his teleprompter glitched, leading him to speak off the cuff. What followed was a freewheeling 57-minute speech—far exceeding his 15-minute slot—that felt more like a US election rally than a global forum. He boasted about record stock market highs, cracking down on illegal immigration, imposing tariffs, and building what he called “the greatest economy in the history of the world” during his first term. He pledged to reclaim that success in a second term and slammed former President Joe Biden for mishandling it all.
Amid the domestic-focused talk, Trump highlighted one major global push: strengthening the fight against biological weapons. “To prevent potential disasters, I’m announcing today that my administration will lead an international effort to enforce the Biological Weapons Convention,” he declared. He plans to host a summit of world leaders to tackle bioweapons development, especially those powered by artificial intelligence. Trump warned that if such weapons were unleashed, “there would be no United Nations to be talking about—there would be nothing.” Without naming China directly, he blamed the COVID-19 pandemic on “reckless experiments overseas” with biotechnology.
Other speakers pushed back hard against Trump’s UN jabs. Before him, Germany’s Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, serving as General Assembly president, praised the UN’s role in global safety, noting that without its International Civil Aviation Organization, leaders like Trump couldn’t even fly in safely. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres defended the body’s mission of fostering cooperation over chaos, rule of law over lawlessness, and peace over conflict. But he issued a stark warning: The world now faces a choice between “raw power or laws, self-interest or nations coming together.”
Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto echoed that support, crediting the UN with helping his nation gain independence, build its economy, and wipe out poverty.
Trump turned his fire on illegal immigration, saying it plagues not just the US but sweeps across borders worldwide. He accused European allies of doing too little to counter Russia’s actions and warned that unchecked migration is sending some countries “to hell” by disrupting societies. He claimed London is falling under Sharia law and highlighted the persecution of Christianity as the world’s most targeted faith. “Together, let us defend free speech and free expression. Let us protect religious liberty, including for the most persecuted religion on the planet today—it’s called Christianity,” he said.
To underscore UN waste, Trump recounted offering to renovate its headquarters for $500 million, only for the organization to hire others who blew billions on shoddy work. On climate change, he dismissed the idea of a global crisis and pushed for more use of carbon-based fuels instead of windmills.
In a surprise twist on international relations, Trump mentioned imposing tariffs on Brazil over its prosecution of his ally, former President Jair Bolsonaro, who was convicted of plotting a coup. Yet, he spoke warmly of Brazil’s current leader, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva—who addressed the assembly earlier—and invited him for a meeting next week.
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