New York

UN Assembly, Trump attacks on migrants: 'Europe is overrun with illegals'. Climate change 'a scam'

The US president's speech was one of the most eagerly awaited at the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly, which will see all the major world leaders take turns on the podium at the Glass Palace until Monday. Trump spoke for about 57 minutes: the Assembly's rules allow for speeches of a maximum of 15 minutes.

23 September 2025

Trump: Dall'Onu arrivano solo lettere con parole vuote, che non fermano le guerre

7' min read

Key points

Harsh words against the UN and London over immigration management
The attack on the UN and the no recognition of Palestine
Ukraine, Trump "ready for sanctions against Russia but world must do the same"
Guterres to Security Council: Israel attack in Qatar violates international standards
Trump-von der Leyen bilateral meeting

7' min read

"This is truly America's Golden Age". This was said by the President of the United States, Donald Trump, in his address to the UN General Assembly. The White House chief began his speech by harshly attacking the previous US administration, blaming his predecessor Joe Biden for a "series of disasters". "America is blessed with the strongest economy, the most powerful military and enduring friendships. This is truly America's golden age,' Trump said.

Harsh words against the UN and London over immigration management

In one of the harshest passages of his speech in front of world leaders, the US president revived the topic of uncontrolled immigration, a phenomenon that has devastated EU countries in particular. "The number one political issue of our time is the crisis of uncontrolled migration" and the UN encourages the "invasion" of certain countries through illegal immigration, Trump attacked, stating that Europe is being invaded by "illegals" and attacking London Mayor Sadiq Kahn on the immigration front, calling him "terrible" and claiming that the British capital has "changed a lot" due to immigration that he says is out of control.

'And I have to say, if I look at London, where there is a terrible, terrible, terrible mayor, the city has changed so much,' Trump said, in a passage of his speech in which he criticised Europe's handling of immigration. 'Now they want to move to Sharia law, but you're in another country. You can't do that,' he added. Last week, while returning to the US from his state visit to the UK, the US president had criticised Khan, calling him 'one of the worst mayors in the world' and stressing that he had made sure he was not invited to the banquet he attended at Windsor Castle.

Trump spoke about migrants for over ten minutes, lashing out at the UN's inaction. "He should stop the invasions, not create and fund them. The US "took bold action to quickly stop uncontrolled immigration. Once we started detaining and deporting, illegal migrants simply stopped coming,' Trump explained, criticising the rate of migrants in Europe: 'It's time to end the failed experiment of open borders. You must end it now. Your countries are going to hell."

The attack on the UN and the no recognition of Palestine

'In seven months I ended seven wars that they said were unendurable. It hasn't happened before, I'm very honoured to have done it,' Trump later complained that he would 'never get a call from the United Nations', and 'no one thanked me' for it: 'The only thing I got was an escalator that stopped in the middle and a teleprompter that doesn't work'. "Empty words do not solve wars," he continued. "What is the purpose of the United Nations? The UN writes letters, but empty words do not solve war, Trump said. "The UN has tremendous potential, I've always said that. But it's not even close to living up to that potential,' the president explained, recounting when he was in real estate in New York and had submitted a bid to renovate the UN headquarters.

After his address to the General Assembly, US President Donald Trump stated in his bilateral with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that the United States "supports the United Nations 100 per cent".

"It's an honour to be here. We've done this before, it was a little bit more exciting because of the escalator, the teleprompter,' Trump said, referring to their operating problems during his visit. 'Our country supports the United Nations 100 per cent,' he added, 'I think the potential of the United Nations is incredible, really incredible. They can do so much, so I support them. Sometimes I may not agree, but I support them, because I think the potential for peace of this institution is huge."

Trump all'Onu: Ho posto fine a 7 guerre e l'Onu non mi ha mai aiutato

Among the topics Trump touched on in his speech was the war in Gaza. "Recognition for Palestine is a reward for Hamas and its terrible attacks," the US president urged in his address to the assembled assembly at the Glass Palace, raising to applause the immediate release of the hostages and stating that the Palestinian group "has repeatedly rejected reasonable proposals for peace". "Everyone who wants peace must be united in a message to Hamas: 'free the hostages'," Trump continued: "We must negotiate peace immediately, but we want the hostages back".

Ukraine, Trump 'ready for sanctions against Russia but world must do the same'

"China and India are the main financiers of the war" through the purchase of Russian oil, but "some Europeans" are also doing the same, Trump went on to mention the crisis in Ukraine. In case Russia does not want to negotiate a peace agreement, Trump continued, the United States is "ready" to impose new sanctions and tariffs, "but for them to be effective, the European Union and all of you gathered here must take the same measures".

"In my opinion, climate change is the biggest scam ever perpetrated in the world": Climate change was another controversial front targeted by Trump during his speech at the UN General Assembly. "All predictions made by the United Nations and others, often for bad reasons, are wrong," Trump continued, calling scientists working on climate change "stupid people" and climate warming and the resulting policies "a green scam".

The US president's speech was one of the most eagerly awaited at the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly, which until Monday 29 September will see all the major world leaders take turns on the podium at the UN Headquarters.

Guterres at the UN Assembly: "UN principles under siege".

Opening the proceedings, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned the representatives of the nations gathered in the hemicycle of the United Nations Headquarters that "we have entered an era of reckless upheaval and unremitting human suffering". "The principles of the United Nations that you have established are under siege, the pillars of peace and progress are crumbling under the weight of impunity, inequality and indifference," Guterres continued. "Sovereign nations invaded, hunger turned into a weapon, truth silenced," he added, "Each one is a warning.

"Our world is becoming increasingly multipolar. This can be positive, because it reflects a more diverse and dynamic global landscape. But multipolarity without effective multilateral institutions causes chaos, as Europe learnt to its cost, giving rise to the First World War,' Guterres stressed again in another passage of his speech.

Speaking then about the war between Israel and the Palestinians in Gaza Guterres explained that "nothing can justify the terrible terrorist attacks by Hamas on 7 October", which he "repeatedly condemned", and nothing can justify "the collective punishment of the Palestinian people and the systematic destruction of Gaza". "We need a permanent ceasefire, for all hostages to be released now, and full humanitarian access now," he added, "we must not give in on the only viable answer for sustainable peace in the Middle East: a two-state solution. Applause in the hall.

Guterres to Security Council: Israel attack in Qatar violates international norms

"The Israeli attack was not only a violation of Qatar's sovereignty and territorial integrity, but also threatened the very norms and mechanisms we rely on in diplomacy and conflict resolution," said UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, addressing the Security Council's extraordinary session on the situation in the Middle East and Palestine.

Calling the situation in Gaza 'untenable and morally and legally indefensible does not give the slightest idea of the extent of human suffering. I have repeatedly called for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, the release of all hostages and immediate humanitarian access, but UN resolutions continue to be ignored. Humanitarian law is being violated. Impunity prevails. And our collective credibility is being undermined'. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said this while returning to praise France and Saudi Arabia for the summit on the two-state solution, "the viability of which is steadily eroding". "I welcome the recognition of the Palestinian state by many other countries," he continued, "This is the clearest path to a two-state solution.

Trump-von der Leyen bilateral meeting

As is now a well-established tradition, the first to speak at the opening of the proceedings, after the UN Secretary-General and General Assembly President Annalena Baerbock, was the president of Brazil, Luis Inacio Lula da Silva, followed by the head of the White House, Donald Trump, as host country.

During the afternoon Trump met with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky. The meeting lasted an hour. Later in the day, the US president will have a bilateral with Emmanuel Macron and one with President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

Trump today also met von der Leyen: "It is a great honour to meet a very powerful and very intelligent woman and a friend of mine." Donald Trump said this during a conversation with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on the sidelines of the UN assembly. "She does a fantastic job of governing so many different nations," the US president added.

"Excellent discussion with Trump on the sidelines of the UN Assembly. We discussed Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine. We agreed on the need to quickly cut off Russia's revenues from fossil fuels. This is exactly what Europe is doing with our 19th sanctions package. We are intensifying the pressure, banning Russian LNG imports into European markets and targeting third-country refineries, oil operators and refineries. By 2027, the EU will have turned the page for good on Russian fossil fuels'. This is written in X Ursula von der Leyen. .

Let's increase the pressure by banning Russian LNG imports to European markets and by hitting refineries, oil traders and refining plants in third countries,' von der Leyen continued, pointing out that 'by 2027, Europe will have turned the page on Russian fossil fuels once and for all'. In addition, von der Leyen said that the Kremlin's "provocations, including regular incursions into European airspace," had also been addressed in the course of the talks.
"These are obvious attempts to test our reaction. That is why Europe is accelerating its defence efforts to strengthen its eastern flank," Commission President von der Leyen noted. Finally, Trump and von der Leyen also discussed 'the situation in the Middle East', making it clear that they both 'agree that the suffering of civilians must end. Europe strongly supports the two-state solution'.

Finally, in a very busy day, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and US President Donald Trump had a meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York today to discuss a range of issues, including the situation in Ukraine. Guterres and Trump 'discussed international current events, in particular the war in Ukraine', the UN chief's office reported.

New York blindata per gli 80 anni dell'Onu. Attese proteste pro-pal

Macron forced to walk.

In New York like dozens of other world leaders just to attend the UN Assembly, French President Emmanuel Macron had to deal with the traffic stop for Trump's arrival. As the US president's convoy arrived in the area of the Glass Palace, security forces diverted traffic. And Macron, as documented by a video that went viral on social media, had to adapt to the security measures. "President Macron, I'm sorry... Walk,' asked a Big Apple police officer explaining the situation to the French president. Macron listened and resigned. He then pulled out his mobile phone and presumably phoned Trump: 'Guess what, I'm waiting on the street. Everything is closed for you...".