US, EU leaders air divisions

US President Donald Trump returned to the United Nations on Tuesday, leveling broad, detailed critiques of the institution and lecturing its member states.

Speaking second after Brazil's President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Trump "seized" the spotlight. Since Monday, multiple New York streets have been closed for his motorcade, reporters have been rotating through the press room to film and thousands have gathered outside the UN to protest, leading to numerous arrests.

This is the first address of Trump's second term upon his return to the White House, and it lasted nearly an hour, quadrupling his allotted 15 minutes. The president criticized the UN for "not doing enough" as he recounted his foreign policy successes.

"What is the purpose of the United Nations?" Trump asked in the speech. "It's not even coming close to living up to that potential."

Since returning to office, he has rolled back UN funding, with $1 billion already cut, and more reductions expected in 2026.

Trump opened his remarks by complaining the escalator inside the UN building and the teleprompter weren't working, warning the operator was "in big trouble," though a UN official said the teleprompter was run by the White House.

Before Trump's presidency, he had been turned down in a bid to renovate the headquarters as a real estate developer.

The US president also argued the UN has failed to broker peace, saying it does little more than issue "strongly worded letters" and offer "empty words." He again touted himself for a Nobel Peace Prize.

"It's too bad that I had to do these things instead of the United Nations doing them," Trump said. "I ended seven wars, dealt with the leaders of each and every one of these countries, and never even received a phone call from the United Nations offering to help in finalizing the deal."

However, amid the Gaza war, the US vetoed six Security Council cease-fire resolutions, saying hostages must be freed first, which Trump echoed in his speech.

He also ripped US allies for recognizing Palestine. On Monday, France, Belgium and others joined a growing list of countries recognizing the State of Palestine at a high-level UN meeting on the two-state solution.

"Some of this body is seeking to unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state. The rewards would be too great for Hamas terrorists for their atrocities," Trump said.

On Ukraine, Trump said he wants the war to end and warned that the US is prepared to impose "a very strong round of powerful tariffs" on Russia if Moscow refuses a peace deal. He also accused European allies, as well as India and China, of buying Russian oil that he said is fueling the war.

"Your countries are going to hell," he warned EU leaders.

Trump also warned that Europe is in "serious trouble," citing immigration and energy issues. He further accused the UN of "funding an assault on Western countries."

Trump criticized UN climate efforts and urged countries to buy more US energy, saying America would no longer sacrifice to shift the world away from carbon fuels. Upon returning to office, he again ordered the United States to withdraw from the Paris climate accord.

"All of these predictions made by the United Nations and many others, often for bad reasons, were wrong," he said. "They were made by stupid people."

"The entire globalist concept of asking successful industrialized nations to inflict pain on themselves and radically disrupt their entire societies must be rejected completely and totally, and it must be immediate," Trump said.

After his remarks, Trump met with several leaders and appeared to walk back his earlier position.

"Ukraine, with the support of the EU, is in a position to fight and win back all of its territory," he wrote on his social media platform, signaling a shift from his earlier call for Kyiv to make concessions and his criticism of the EU.

Trump was scheduled to meet with the leaders of Ukraine, Argentina and the European Union on Tuesday.

Before Trump's speech, Secretary-General of the UN António Guterres warned about the dangerously chaotic state of the world while providing a measure of hope that unity and diplomacy can bring stability.

"People everywhere are demanding something better, and we owe them something deserving of their trust," Guterres said.

In his remarks, Guterres argued that the UN remains indispensable.

"At its best, the United Nations is more than a meeting place, it is a moral compass, a force for peace … a guardian of international law and a lifeline for people in crisis."

In the afternoon, French President Emmanuel Macron also addressed the General Assembly. Macron, reportedly phoned him on Monday night after being blocked in traffic by the US president's motorcade.

Macron offered a different vision than Trump. He said the UN is an important institution that must be strengthened. He also underscored the urgency of tackling climate change, warning it is "not under control" and "biodiversity is collapsing."

He further called on Israel, one of Washington's closest allies, to end what he described as a "permanent war" with its neighbors, despite Trump's warning to European leaders in the morning.

The UN's "harshest critics are also those that want to change the rules of the game, because they want to exert domination," he said. "The world's complexity is not a reason to throw in the towel on our principles and our ambitions. To a certain extent, ours is a moment of paradox. We need more than ever before to restore the spirit of cooperation that prevailed 80 years ago."

"We need to act, act, act," Macron said.