Loud gasps were heard at the United Nations General Assembly in New York as Donald Trump, the US President, attacked and belittled his audience in a bizarre rant
Donald Trump was briefly stopped in his tracks by a broken escalator but his reputation soon fell again after his spectacular outburst at the UN yesterday.
In a one-hour tirade at the UN’s General Assembly, he claimed immigration was ruining European countries and urged Keir Starmer to open more oil fields in the North Sea, declaring global warming a hoax. The US President also said Nato should shoot down Russian planes in its airspace, following recent incursions in Estonia and Poland.
He arrived on stage in New York complaining the teleprompter was broken, and an escalator had stopped working on his way into the UN headquarters with his wife Melania.
Delegates chuckled as he recounted having bid on the contract to refurbish the building. He said: “They spent between $2 and $4billion and didn’t even get the marble floors I was promising.” Mr Trump claimed the bidding process was corrupt, adding: “Unfortunately, many things in the United Nations are happening like that but on a much bigger scale.”
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Mr Trump listed seven wars he claims to have prevented or ended, but criticised the UN for “failing” to help. He said: “It’s too bad that I had to do these things instead of the UN. All I got from the UN was an escalator that stopped in the middle. If the First Lady hadn’t been in great shape, she would have fallen. And now a teleprompter that doesn’t work.
Mr Trump said the UN was “notliving up to its potential” and took a swipe at Europe over immigration, adding: “Your countries are going to hell. Europe is in serious trouble. They’ve been invaded by a force of illegal aliens like nobody’s ever seen before and nobody’s doing anything to get them out. It’s not sustainable.”
He stoked his long-running feud with London mayor Sadiq Khan, saying: “I look at London,where you have a terrible, terrible mayor. Now they want to goto sharia law.” A spokesman for Sir Sadiq said of Mr Trump: “We are not going to dignify his appalling and bigoted comments with a response.”
Mr Trump said the Paris Climate Accord was “fake” and hit out at windfarms, adding: “Drill, baby, drill. All green is all bankrupt.” Of North Sea oil, he said: “What atremendous asset for the United Kingdom. I hope the Prime Minister is listening.”
Mr Trump tore into UN delegates who recognised Palestinian statehood during a special meeting last night. He said: “The rewards would be too great for Hama satrocities. Instead of giving in to [Hamas] ransom demands, we should have one message: release the hostages now,” prompting his only applause from delegates.
He added: “We have to stop the war in Gaza immediately.” Later, Mr Trump said he believes Nato members should shoot down Russian aircraft if they enter their airspace. Asked the question at a bilateral meeting with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, he said: “Yes, I do.”
But Mr Trump later stopped short of saying the US would join in the effort to shoot down Russian aircraft violating allied airspace. He said: “Depends on the circumstance. But you know, we’re very strong toward Nato.”
On Monday, Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper warned Vladimir Putin: “Your reckless actions risk a direct armed confrontation between Nato and Russia.”
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