NEW YORK, N.Y. — President Trump delivered his first major speech to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) today. Warming the hearts of his core voters, Trump railed against North Korea giving the regime his harshest warning yet.
“The U.S. has great strength and patience but if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea,” said Trump to the UNGA.
Trump also spoke in harsh terms about Iran and the nuclear deal signed by his predecessor, reported CBS News. He called it “one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the U.S. has ever entered” and deemed it an “embarrassment to the U.S.”
Trump reiterated his “America First” ideology saying, “I will always put America first — just like you — as the leaders of your countries will always — and should — always put your countries first.”
Trump made “sovereignty” a major theme of his speech saying, “As long as I hold this office I will defend America’s interests above all else but in fulfilling our obligations to our own nations we also realize its in everyone’s interest to seek a future where all nations can be sovereign, prosperous and secure.”
OutRight Action Internaional, the only global LGBTIQ-specific organization with a permanent presence at the United Nations in New York that advocates for human rights progress for LGBTIQ people, reacted to Trump’s speech calling for a human rights-based approach to system reform and security.
“Time and time again, President Trump has threatened to curtail the United States’ obligations to the international human rights system and to the United Nations itself, ” said Jessica Stern, executive director of OutRight Action International. “In his remarks today, the word he said most often – sovereignty – underscored that his political agenda promotes political isolationism and undermines the global cooperation that protects vulnerable people from natural disasters, corrupt governments, and civil war.
“As an organization that serves as a watchdog on the UN, we know that sovereignty is a term loaded with negative meaning. Sovereignty is often an excuse for States to ignore their obligation to protect the human rights of individuals, especially those that are most marginalized and vulnerable.
“Reform in President Trump’s words is code for stripping the human rights system of much-needed resources. We believe the only reform that is truly needed puts LGBTIQ people and all vulnerable groups at the center of UN governance, human rights, and programs. The reform and resources we need would elevate the rights of the world’s most marginalized, open space for meaningful civil society participation, and invest in climate justice.”
