US President Donald Trump launched a blistering attack on the United Nations during his address to the 2025 UN General Assembly on Tuesday, accusing the global body of failing to foster peace and dismissing its efforts as “strongly worded letters” that “don’t solve wars”.
Speaking before more than 140 world leaders in the General Assembly Hall, his first appearance at the UNGA since returning to the White House, Trump posed a rhetorical challenge: “What is the purpose of the United Nations?”
His speech came amid heightened global tensions, as Israel intensifies its military offensive in Gaza City — and just one day after France, Belgium and several other Western nations formally recognised the State of Palestine, bringing the total number of recognising UN member states to at least 151.
Trump opened his address by noting it had been six years since he last stood at the UNGA podium, a period he claimed began with the world “prosperous and at peace”, only to be “shattered” by “the previous administration”, an unmistakable reference to President Joe Biden.
“In the eight months since I returned to power, the United States has become the hottest country anywhere in the world,” Trump declared, a line interpreted by observers as both economic bravado and a veiled jab at global climate discourse.
His remarks followed a pointed warning from UN Secretary-General António Guterres, who had earlier implored world leaders to “choose peace anchored in international law” and halt “the looming threat of annexation”.
Guterres also condemned deep cuts to global development aid — widely understood to reference US policy warning that such reductions were “wreaking havoc” and amounted to “a death sentence for many, a stolen future for many more”.
“When accountability shrinks, graveyards grow,” he said.
Trump issued a thinly veiled warning to global institutions — and perhaps to political rivals at home and abroad.
“If the UN cannot act, then others will,” he said. “We too shall see how peace is made — and who dreams of coming to power.”
Donald Trump also called climate change the "greatest con job ever" and alleged that the concept of carbon footprints was "a hoax" as he addressed the UN General Assembly Tuesday.
"Climate change – it's the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world, in my opinion," he said. "(The) carbon footprint is a hoax made up by people with evil intentions, and they're heading down a path of total destruction."'
Global leaders sound alarm over erosion of institutions
Before Trump took the stage, Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva — who, in keeping with longstanding tradition, delivered the first national address of the General Debate — issued a stark warning about “anti-democratic forces undermining international institutions”.
Though Lula did not name names, his message was widely interpreted as a direct response to Trump’s anticipated speech. The White House had previewed the US President’s address as focusing on “globalist institutions that have significantly decayed the world order”.
UN General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock, Germany’s former foreign minister, opened the session by calling for renewed multilateralism and institutional reform — a theme echoed by Guterres, who urged greater transparency and accountability across global governance bodies.
Palestine statehood: Symbolic shift amid Gaza war
Monday’s recognition of Palestinian statehood by France, Belgium and others marks a seismic diplomatic shift though experts caution that symbolic recognition does not equate to full sovereignty or UN membership.
Dr Anne Irfan, Lecturer in Interdisciplinary Race, Gender and Postcolonial Studies at University College London, noted: “Statehood declarations reflect growing global impatience with the status quo — but without enforcement mechanisms or territorial control, their practical impact remains limited.”
The move adds pressure on the UN and major powers to recalibrate their approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict — a challenge now thrown into sharper relief by Trump’s dismissal of multilateral diplomacy.