Trump Threatens to Annihilate Iran in UN Address as Sides Meet

New York (GNP): United States President Donald Trump told the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday that he faced a major decision on whether to pursue renewed military action against Iran or finalise a peace agreement. He warned that he could move to annihilate the Islamic Republic if the standoff remained unresolved. A single member of Iran’s delegation was present in the chamber as he spoke.

The remarks came during a day marked by parallel high level diplomacy between the two countries. Trump used his address to defend the ongoing military campaign against Iran, arguing that it had stopped Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon. He said the operation had proven the effectiveness of pressuring adversaries through strength rather than negotiation.

He suggested a settlement with Iran remained possible but indicated it was more likely to emerge after the November midterm elections in the United States. “There is no global government,” Trump said, rejecting calls for greater multilateral oversight and instead emphasising national sovereignty and American military strength.

Away from the podium, American and Iranian officials held a three hour meeting on the sidelines of the General Assembly, conducted through Qatari mediation. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff. Tehran reportedly conveyed conditions that included an end to hostilities on all fronts and a halt to what it described as American acts of aggression.

Witkoff later said the discussions had gone through mediators shuttling between both delegations throughout the day. “Successfully completed a round of discussions that we hope will prove constructive and promising,” Witkoff said, adding that the mediators would continue their work.

Trump also addressed the war in Ukraine, telling the assembly that his administration was working closely with both Moscow and Kyiv. He expected a resolution sooner than most observers anticipated. The comment came as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio prepared to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in New York, with fighting between Russia and Ukraine continuing along their shared front lines.

On technology, Trump argued that the United States would retain its lead in artificial intelligence over China. He proposed that the term be replaced with super intelligence, saying it better reflected the capability of the technology, while cautioning that its development still required care.

The address followed a farewell speech from outgoing UN Secretary General António Guterres. He cautioned that global divisions were widening and stressed the interdependence of nations in the face of shared challenges such as climate change and emerging technology. “Their power isn’t so super,” Guterres said, in an apparent reference to major powers resisting multilateral cooperation.

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Trump, by contrast, criticised the United Nations as reflecting a far left agenda driven by unelected bureaucrats. This position set the tone for the sharper exchanges that followed.

Elsewhere on the sidelines, Trump signed a trilateral agreement with the leaders of Denmark and Greenland to expand the American military presence on the Arctic island. The deal reaffirmed Danish sovereignty while granting Washington broader access to Greenland’s airspace and territory.

The president also held separate meetings with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, and leaders from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman. The gathering focused on regional security in the Middle East.

The Cuban delegation walked out of the chamber after Trump accused Havana’s communist government of cultivating ties with left wing groups inside the United States and described the island as a failed state. This capped a General Assembly session defined by sharp rhetoric alongside quiet diplomatic manoeuvring.