(NewsNation) — President Donald Trump returned to the United Nations on Tuesday, delivering an address touting his second-term foreign policy achievements and condemning world leaders.
Trump took the stage at the U.N. General Assembly, opening his remarks by stating the teleprompter wasn’t working, so he’d “speak from the heart,” instead.
Trump quickly slammed the U.N. and questioned its purpose, stating that the United States brokered agreements that ended seven “unendable wars” because the organization didn’t reach out to help.
“I’ve always said the U.N. has such tremendous, tremendous potential,” he said. “But it’s not even coming close to living up to that potential … It’s empty words, and empty words don’t solve war.”
NATO countries ‘should’ shoot down Russian aircraft: Trump
After his speech at the UN, Trump met with leaders, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Trump expressed optimism that Ukraine could win the war against Russia and return to pre-invasion boundaries.
That’s a big shift in tone for the president, who previously suggested Ukraine would have to give up land to end the war.
After several airspace incursions in recent weeks, Trump also supported NATO countries that want to shoot down Russian jets or drones that enter their airspace.
The president also expressed that he is willing to supply NATO with weapons, though that remains contingent on his demand for European countries to abandon Russian oil.
While most European countries stopped importing oil, Slovakia and Hungary are continuing to buy oil from Russia, despite pressure from other European leaders.
‘This is the golden age of America’: Trump
Trump accused the U.N. of “funding an assault” on Western countries’ borders, stating that the best example is “the number one political issue of our time, the crisis of uncontrolled migration.”
He said last year the U.N. budgeted several hundred million dollars to support more than half a million migrants entering the U.S.
“Think of that,” Trump said. “The U.N. is supporting people that are illegally coming into the United States, and we have to get them out.”
The president touted the first eight months of his second term, stating that “inflation has been defeated” — however, it has increased slightly recently since the implementation of his sweeping tariffs.
“This is indeed the golden age of America,” he said. “We’re the hottest country anywhere in the world, and there’s no other country even close.”
Trump: ‘Your countries are going to hell’
“It’s time to end the failed experiment of open borders,” Trump told the gathering. “You have to end it now. I can tell you, I’m really good at this stuff. Your countries are going to hell.”
It was a significant amount of bravado on the world stage — even for a leader who has built his political career on public boasts.
Trump touted his crackdown along the U.S.-Mexico border and pushed hardline domestic immigration policies.
“Once we started detaining and deporting everyone who crossed the border — and removing illegal aliens from the United States — they simply stopped coming,” he said.
The president called his efforts a “humanitarian act,” arguing the administration has saved people who might have otherwise died trying to cross the U.S. border illegally.
Trump to meet privately with world leaders
Following his speech, Trump was expected to hold private meetings with U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres and the leaders of Ukraine, Argentina and the European Union. He will also meet with officials from Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Turkey, Pakistan, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan before hosting a reception with more than 100 world leaders.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.