President Donald Trump used his address to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday to threaten Iran with annihilation while insisting that diplomacy was advancing, setting out a hard-line position as the nearly seven-month war continues to reshape the Middle East.
Trump said the United States may “annihilate” the Islamic Republic if an agreement to end the war is not reached soon. He also vowed to “drive them into hell” in comments directed at the Iranian government.
Yet Trump told reporters that US and Iranian officials had held talks on Tuesday lasting three hours. “It was a very good meeting,” he said. “I think that a settlement is going to be reached” in the war in Iran.
He added: “They want to talk to us. They have been talking to us, even today. They’ve been talking to us, and the relationship is developing.”
The Iranian delegation, however, walked out of the meeting after hearing the threats. The brief does not set out Tehran’s assessment of the talks or the positions discussed during them. It is also unclear whether the walkout signals a lasting rupture in negotiations or a tactical response to Trump’s language.
Much of Trump’s speech addressed Iran and the war. He defended his decision to enter the conflict alongside Israel earlier this year, saying Tehran had turned down earlier attempts to secure an agreement preventing it from obtaining nuclear weapons.
Trump described Tehran as “weak and desperate”. He accused Iran of delaying an agreement to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz and settle the war until after the midterm elections in the US. He said he expected an agreement after the November midterm elections.
The president called on other countries to economically isolate Iran until it stops attacks on commercial shipping, gives up its nuclear ambitions and ends support for terrorism. He referred to Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and accused Iran of backing the terrorists responsible.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Trump was willing to meet Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian. “The president is open to a meeting with him or anybody,” Rubio said.
Trump also addressed other security issues during the assembly. He sat beside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the United Nations and told reporters that Russia and Ukraine both want the war between them to end.
On the sidelines of the General Assembly in New York, Trump signed an agreement with Denmark and Greenland on Tuesday to strengthen Arctic and North Atlantic security. The agreement is intended to expand the US military presence on Greenland while leaving the island under Danish control. The brief gives no timeline for implementation or details of the military presence envisaged under the deal.
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