A Tale of Two UNGA Speeches

Trump, Guterres Address UNGA With Contrasting Messages

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Situation Report: A Tale of Two UNGA Speeches

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Situation Report

A weekly digest of national security, defense, and cybersecurity news from Foreign Policy reporters John Haltiwanger and Rishi Iyengar. Delivered Thursday.

A Tale of Two UNGA Speeches

U.S. President Donald Trump made threats, while outgoing U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres called for peace and multilateralism.

By **John Haltiwanger**, a staff writer at *Foreign Policy*, and **Rishi Iyengar**, a staff writer at *Foreign Policy*.

!U.S.President Donald Trump is seen walking of off the stage at the United Nations in New York City.

*U.S.President Donald Trump is seen walking of off the stage at the United Nations in New York City.*

U.S. President Donald Trump departs after speaking at the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York City on Sept. 22. Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

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September 22, 2026, 5:53 PM

Iran War

Analysis and news.

Welcome back to *Foreign Policy*’s Situation Report, on the ground for Day 2 of UNGA. Here’s what’s on tap for the day: **Trump**’s speech, **Guterres**’s swan song, and **Zelensky**’s press conference.

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**Trump Threats**

U.S. President Donald Trump used his speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday to dial up the pressure on Iran, threatening to “annihilate” the country if it does not make a deal with the United States to end the war.

Welcome back to *Foreign Policy*’s Situation Report, on the ground for Day 2 of UNGA. Here’s what’s on tap for the day: **Trump**’s speech, **Guterres**’s swan song, and **Zelensky**’s press conference.

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**Trump Threats**

U.S. President Donald Trump used his speech to the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday to dial up the pressure on Iran, threatening to “annihilate” the country if it does not make a deal with the United States to end the war.

“I have a big decision to make: Will a deal be made with Iran that lets them rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before, maybe one of the greatest in the Middle East or even the world?” Trump mused to the audience of world leaders and diplomats. “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?”

After presenting the stark choice, Trump said he believed that the two sides would arrive at a deal after the upcoming U.S. midterm election “because it doesn’t make sense for them not to.” It remains unclear whether any progress toward such a deal will be made this week—Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian is leading a delegation to UNGA, but we don’t yet know if the two sides will meet.

Iran was also not the only country that Trump threatened: He called Cuba an “absolutely failed state” that “will fall,” adding that his administration would “not allow a haven for foreign adversaries to threaten America on our own doorstep.” Members of the Cuban delegation walked out of the chamber in response.

**Greenland.** It wasn’t all fire and fury, however. Trump took a moment to tout a new deal with Denmark and Greenland that will significantly increase U.S. military presence in the latter, a compromise after he repeatedly threatened in the past year to take the territory by force . Trump said he would officially sign the agreement later today and praised the negotiating process. “It’s been a great experience, amazing experience, and we’ve really formed a bond in doing it,” he added.

**Global gripes.** Trump somewhat toned down the excoriation of the U.N. and its member countries that he spent most of his UNGA speech last year on, instead praising the institution for cutting its budget this year (under immense U.S. pressure). “The United Nations has great, great potential. I’ve said that for many years,” he said. “But it must stop imposing the far-left agenda of globalist bureaucrats who nobody ever elected.”

He reserved far more of his ire for the International Criminal Court, labeling it an “evil group of people” and calling on countries to resign from “this rogue institution.”

**‘Superintelligence.’** Trump is leaving UNGA tomorrow to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping back in Washington, and the growing conversation around the risk from artificial intelligence is expected to be high on the agenda.

But the U.S. president made it clear that he isn’t thinking too hard about AI risks, with an extended riff on how the technology should be called “superintelligence” instead. “The use of the word ‘artificial’ makes intelligence … sound fake, and it is not fake. It’s actually amazing,” he said. “In other words, welcome to the new world of superintelligence—SI,” he added. “Whoever wins superintelligence wins.”

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On the Button

**Swan Song.** Far better received was the day’s opening speech from outgoing U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres, who is stepping down at the end of this year after a decade at the helm of the institution.

Guterres received several extended bouts of applause—particularly when he criticized Israel for its war in Gaza, advocated for African countries to receive “permanent representation” on the U.N. Security Council, and pressed to end global gender inequality.

In an impassioned speech calling for the preservation of multilateral institutions in the face of “frag