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Trump threatens Iran at UN and signs Greenland military deal

US President Donald Trump threatened to annihilate Iran during his UN General Assembly speech and signed a military agreement concerning Greenland.

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Inewgen
23 Sep 2026Source: BBC World3 min read (0 views)
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Trump threatens Iran at UN and signs Greenland military deal

Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event

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  • Donald Trump threatened to destroy Iran if no diplomatic deal is reached.
  • US and Iranian officials held a three-hour meeting on the UN sidelines.
  • Trump signed a new agreement to boost US military presence in Greenland.
  • The US president pledged to maintain American leadership in artificial intelligence.

US President Donald Trump told the United Nations General Assembly that he faces a critical choice between launching another strike on Iran or pursuing a peace agreement. Speaking before a packed auditorium in Manhattan, Trump rejected the concept of global government, vowed to broker peace between Russia and Ukraine, and promised to secure America's victory in the artificial intelligence race.

His remarks arrived during a heavy diplomatic schedule, involving meetings with over a dozen world leaders while ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine pressure his foreign policy framework. Trump opened his address by highlighting domestic achievements regarding the economy, border security, and violent crime reduction, striking a tone more suited for American voters ahead of November's midterm elections than diplomats.

The US leader spent a significant portion of his speech defending the military confrontation with Iran, which has driven up global oil prices and impacted his approval ratings following joint operations with Israel launched in February. Trump maintained that the conflict successfully blocked Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, reinforcing his foreign policy doctrine of achieving peace through absolute strength.

US diplomatic meeting room conference interior

Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event

"Will a deal be made with Iran that lets them rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before? 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?"

Donald Trump

Later in the day, Trump informed reporters that American officials conducted a productive three-hour discussion with the Iranian delegation on the sidelines of the general assembly. Iranian state television confirmed that Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff. When approached by the BBC outside the UN building regarding the outcome, Witkoff responded by flashing a thumbs-up gesture.

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3Hours of closed-door talks between US and Iranian officials at the UN

Donald Trump's deployment of coercive diplomacy heavily relies on pairing aggressive ultramarines with active backchannel negotiations. The direct meeting between high-ranking US and Iranian representatives, occurring concurrently with harsh rhetoric on the global stage, highlights a dual-track strategy designed to project maximum pressure while keeping diplomatic lifelines open ahead of upcoming domestic political milestones.

Addressing other global tech and geopolitical issues, Trump dismissed fears surrounding AI, asserting that the US will not surrender its technological edge to international alarmism, and suggested renaming the technology to "super intelligence." On Tuesday, Trump also formalised a pact with leaders from Denmark and Greenland to expand American military positioning on the North Atlantic island, preserving Greenland's autonomous status while granting broad territorial access to US forces.

Source: BBC World

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