Trump threatens Iran in UN address

President Trump used his address to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday to defend his administration’s use of American power, threaten Iran with further military action and warn that the United States would use force to protect its interests in the Western Hemisphere.

Speaking in New York before meetings with foreign leaders, Trump cast his foreign policy as a break from past administrations, saying he had confronted dangers others avoided. “I do not believe in letting problems fester,” he said. “They only become harder to solve. So while others have talked, I have acted while others have spoken of peace, I have made peace. While others have ignored threats, I have confronted them. While others have talked of courage, America has shown it.”

The speech came as the administration manages several conflicts and diplomatic strains. The war with Iran will reach the seven-month mark next week. Trump is also trying to complete a peace plan for the Gaza Strip between Israel and Hamas and has struggled to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Trump said the United States acted to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. “For 51 years, the fanatical Iranian regime has ruled by bloodshed and mass murder, spreading death and carnage and chaos across the entire Middle East and beyond,” he said. “From the first day I entered the political arena, I’ve been unwavering. I will never allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon.”

He then warned Iran against refusing a deal. “Will a deal be made with Iran that lets them rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before?” Trump said. “Or do I annihilate the Islamic Republic, and do it quickly, never giving them a chance to kill and destroy people and countries again? Do I drive them into hell with no chance of survival and no hope of future greatness or generations?” The Guardian reported that Trump also said he was confident Iran would make a deal after the U.S. midterm elections.

U.S. officials told reporters ahead of the speech to watch Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who they said would communicate that continuing to do business with Iran “is unacceptable, and there will be consequences for it.” CBS News reported that the administration granted visas for a small Iranian delegation to attend the gathering in New York, though it was unclear whether Trump would interact with them.

Trump also defended U.S. actions in Latin America and the Caribbean. “Our actions in Venezuela are proof that the United States will no longer permit threats to America to gain a foothold anywhere in the Western Hemisphere, and if necessary, we will use our unmatched military might to secure the vital national interests of the United States,” he said.

He described cartels as “the ISIS of the Western Hemisphere,” adding: “They’re enemies at war with civilization, using murder, rape, torture, and extortion as instruments of terror. Like ISIS, they should be killed, exiled or detained as enemy combatants without the possibility of release, which is what we’re doing.”

The Guardian reported that Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who spoke before Trump, criticized interventionism in Latin America. “The Venezuelan people deserve to define their own destiny,” Lula said. He also said, “In Cuba, the world watches in horror as collective punishment is imposed on 10 million people by an illegal economic and energy embargo.”

Trump opened his remarks by marking the United States’ 250th anniversary and touting his domestic record, including tax cuts, stock market highs, crime rates and immigration enforcement. “Before I took office, we had the worst and most dangerous border on earth, and now we have the most secure border in American history,” he said. “In the past 16 months, zero illegal aliens have been admitted to the United States.”

On the sidelines of the General Assembly, Trump is expected to meet with several leaders, including U.K. Prime Minister Andy Burnham, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and Gulf state leaders. He met Monday with French President Emmanuel Macron. He is also preparing to host Chinese President Xi Jinping at the White House on Thursday as the U.S. and China try to repair economic ties after last year’s trade war.