Iran’s mid-level officials and delegation walked out of the United Nations General Assembly after United States President Donald Trump threatened on Tuesday to “annihilate” Iran if Tehran fails to reach a deal with Washington, while declaring at the United Nations General Assembly that Cuba’s communist government was failing and “will fall.”
Trump made the remarks in a combative address to the 81st session of the UN General Assembly in New York, where he defended the United States’ failing months-long military campaign against Iran and warned that he could escalate the conflict rather than accept a settlement that allows Tehran to recover.
“I have a big decision to make,” Trump told world leaders gathered at the UN headquarters.
“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?
“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?”
Trump nevertheless said he believed a deal with Iran would eventually be reached but tied his expectation to the US midterm elections.
“I believe we’ll make a deal right after the election,” he said.
Trump also sought to distance himself from the electoral consequences of the November midterms, saying he was not personally on the ballot.
“I’m not running. I did that already and won in a landslide. The Republican Party is running, and I’ll be helping them, but I am not running,” he said.
The Iranian delegation walked out of the General Assembly Hall as Trump addressed the conflict, with most of the delegation leaving about 10 minutes into his speech.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi were in New York for the UN gathering but were not in the hall during Trump’s address.
Trump devoted much of his roughly 40-minute address to defending his administration’s foreign policy and military actions, portraying the campaign against Iran as necessary to prevent Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons and claiming that American military power had altered the balance of power in the region.
He also turned his attention to Cuba, saying his administration was seeking “a fundamental change in the situation in Cuba.”
“It’s an absolutely failed state—it’s failing like never before, and it will fall,” Trump said.
