President Donald Trump told the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Tuesday that confronting Iran’s nuclear ambitions and its sponsorship of terrorism was a problem previous administrations chose to ignore, and one his administration decided to act on directly.
“This was the reality we had to confront,” Trump said, describing the choice he faced upon taking office in January 2025.
Before turning to Iran, Trump reviewed domestic accomplishments he credited to his second term, including the addition of one million jobs, lower violent crime rates, and improvements to Washington, D.C. He described inheriting what he called a “dark age” from the prior administration, which he said has since given way to a “golden age.”
On Iran, Trump said he offered the regime full economic cooperation in exchange for permanently ending its nuclear weapons program and its support for terrorist organizations. He said Iran refused, calling that decision a mistake.
“While others have talked, I have acted. While others have spoken of peace, I have made peace. While others have ignored threats, I have confronted them.”
Trump referenced 2025’s Operation Midnight Hammer, saying the strike “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear program, and that he again urged the regime to negotiate afterward. He said Iran instead continued building missile and drone stockpiles, some capable of reaching Europe.
“Iran’s goal was to complete their mad dash to a nuclear bomb from behind this conventional ballistic missile shield,” Trump said. “If they had succeeded, that wicked regime would have been free to spread terror and death forever, knowing that any attempt to stop them would face an arsenal of nuclear annihilation.”
Trump connected his remarks to recent anniversaries: the 25th anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks, marked 11 days earlier, and the approaching third anniversary of the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, which killed 1,200 Israeli civilians, including 46 Americans, with a dozen more taken hostage. Trump said that attack was funded by Iran’s regime and that Iran’s Supreme Leader had called it “a service to humanity.”
He also said Iran’s regime has killed tens of thousands of its own citizens this year for protesting, and asked the assembled delegates to imagine a regime carrying out large-scale terror behind a nuclear shield.
“They were unwilling to do anything about it but they knew the problem,” Trump said of past leaders. “After giving Iran every chance for a deal, I took action to ensure that neither the United States or any nation would have to face such a nightmare.”
Trump said this reasoning underpinned Operation Epic Fury, telling the chamber Iran’s naval fleet is now at the bottom of the sea, its air force destroyed, and its anti-aircraft missiles eliminated. He added that inflation in Iran, which he put at over 300 percent, is the only thing that remains.
Trump said Iran launched further attacks on shipping after agreeing to a ceasefire, and he thanked the U.N. Security Council for passing resolutions condemning those attacks. He said the U.S. Navy has since escorted more than one billion barrels of oil out of the Strait of Hormuz to maintain pressure on the regime.
Closing his remarks on Iran, Trump described the choice before him as either allowing the regime to rebuild or ending the Islamic Republic’s capacity to “kill and destroy again.” He said he believes a deal is possible after the November midterm elections, adding that the regime misjudged him.
“I’ll be here for 2 and a half years… I give no credence to the election when it comes to Iran. It doesn’t even enter my mind. The only thing that does is that Iran will never have a nuclear weapon.”
The line drew applause from the assembly, ending Trump’s remarks on the conflict.
