NewYork: For the first time on Tuesday, United States President Donald Trump addressed the United Nations General Assembly. Referring to North Korea’s supreme leader Kim Jong-un as the “rocket man,” Trump threatened to “destroy” North Korea if the US finds itself “forced to defend itself or its allies.”
Trump’s UN speech also reffered to Iran and nuclear deals. Here’s a look at the top ten highlights of Trump’s speech at the UN:
1. “Rogue regimes” and North Korea
Referring to North Korea as “a small group of rogue regimes that violate every principle on which the United Nations is based”, Trump said, “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. Rocket Man is on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime. The United States is ready, willing and able, but hopefully this will not be necessary. That’s what the United Nations is all about; that’s what the United Nations is for. Let’s see how they do.”
Remembering Otto Warmbier, the 22-year-old American student who was held in captivity for over 15 months in North Korea, Trump said, “We were all witness to the regime’s deadly abuse when an innocent American college student, Otto Warmbier, was returned to America only to die a few days later.
3. Iran, “corrupt dictatorship” and Nuclear deal
Calling out the Iranian government for masking “a corrupt dictatorship behind the false guise of a democracy”, Trump said it’s activities have “turned a wealthy country with a rich history and culture into an economically depleted rogue state whose chief exports are violence, bloodshed, and chaos.”
On the nuclear deal, he said, “The Iran Deal was one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the United States has ever entered into. Frankly, that deal is an embarrassment to the United States, and I don’t think you’ve heard the last of it – believe me.”
4. Hezbollah
The US president alleged that instead of using its resources to improve citizen’s lives, Iran’s “oil profits go to fund Hezbollah and other terrorists that kill innocent Muslims and attack their peaceful Arab and Israeli neighbors. This wealth, which rightly belongs to Iran’s people, also goes to shore up Bashar al-Assad’s dictatorship, fuel Yemen’s civil war, and undermine peace throughout the entire Middle East.”
He further added “It is time to expose and hold responsible those countries who support and finance terror groups like al Qaeda, Hezbollah, the Taliban and others that slaughter innocent people.”
4. Friends with Middle East
Referring to his Saudi Arabia visit in 2016, Trump said more than 50 Arab and Muslim nations agreed to work together to confront “terrorists and the Islamist extremism”. We will stop radical Islamic terrorism because we cannot allow it to tear up our nation, and indeed to tear up the entire world.
5. Taliban and ISIS
Trump also referred to Taliban and ISIS, saying “The rules of engagement in our fight against the Taliban and other terrorist groups. In Syria and Iraq, we have made big gains toward lasting defeat of ISIS. In fact, our country has achieved more against ISIS in the last eight months than it has in many, many years combined.”
6. Immigration
Referring to the costs of “long-term uncontrolled migration”, Trump said, “We have learned that, over the long term, uncontrolled migration is deeply unfair to both the sending and the receiving countries.”
For countries sending migrants, it drains them of “human capital” and for receiving countries, “the substantial costs of uncontrolled migration are borne overwhelmingly by low-income citizens whose concerns are often ignored by both media and government.”
7. Crisis in Cuba, Venezuela
Trump condemned the destabilizing regime in Cuba and Venezuela, adding, “From the Soviet Union to Cuba to Venezuela, wherever true socialism or communism has been adopted, it has delivered anguish and devastation and failure.”
8. United States and UN
Trump was vocal about the fact United States pays 22 percent of the entire UN budget, despite being one just out of 193 countries member. “We pay far more than anybody realizes. The United States bears an unfair cost burden, but, to be fair, if it could actually accomplish all of its stated goals, especially the goal of peace, this investment would easily be well worth it.”
9. United States since Election Day 2016
Highlighting the achievements since he became the President, Trump said that the US stock market is at an all-time high while unemployment is at its lowest level in 16 years. “Companies are moving back, creating job growth the likes of which our country has not seen in a very long time. And it has just been announced that we will be spending almost $700 billion on our military and defense. Our military will soon be the strongest it has ever been,” he added.
10. UN, the good samaritan
Throughtout his speech, Trump praised the United Nations for all the good work done towards several causes.
“I want to salute the work of the United Nations in seeking to address the problems that cause people to flee from their homes. The United Nations and African Union led peacekeeping missions to have invaluable contributions in stabilizing conflicts in Africa. The United States continues to lead the world in humanitarian assistance, including famine prevention and relief in South Sudan, Somalia, and northern Nigeria and Yemen.”
Bureau Report
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