'Rogue Iran, failed Cuba': Trump's UN speech triggers walkouts

"Iran was the bully of the Middle East. Cuba is a completely failed state."

US President Donald Trump unleashed a torrent of blunt attacks against American adversaries from the podium of the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, drawing walkouts from the Iranian and Cuban delegations as his remarks grew increasingly pointed.

Speaking second in the high-level segment of the 81st UN General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York on Tuesday (local time), Trump devoted a substantial portion of the opening of his speech to Iran.

Highlighting what he described as the results of six months of military operations against Iran, Trump said, "They were the bully of the Middle East, but they are no longer the bully."

He then pressed further, saying "I have to make a very important decision" — whether to negotiate with Iran and give it a chance to rebuild, or to swiftly "annihilate" it.

As the sharp remarks continued before an audience of world leaders and diplomats, the Iranian delegation walked out en masse, leaving behind only one working-level staff member in protest. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had not entered the assembly hall when Trump took the floor.

Trump then turned his fire on Cuba.

"Our administration is seeking fundamental change in the situation in Cuba," he said, calling it "a completely failed state." He went on to claim that Cuba "is collapsing at an unprecedented rate and will ultimately collapse." The Cuban delegation also walked out during his remarks.

The UN General Assembly — a forum that typically champions multilateralism and international cooperation — had effectively become a stage for Trump to directly pressure countries long at odds with the United States.

Trump also sharpened his rhetoric against the UN and the International Criminal Court. He told the General Assembly that it "should not be used to impose the far-left agenda of unelected globalist bureaucrats on sovereign nations."

He called the ICC an "out-of-control" and "rogue institution" and urged member states to withdraw, repeating his longstanding argument that the court threatens US sovereignty and its jurisdiction over American citizens.

Trump was equally combative toward the press. When he arrived at UN headquarters that morning and spotted a CNN reporter covering world leaders, he said, "I'm amazed that CNN is here covering me," adding, "You shouldn't be here."

Trump has barred CNN, Microsoft News and Politico from White House press access, accusing the three outlets of spreading what he calls "fake news" about him.

Yet for all his combativeness toward adversaries, international institutions and the media, Trump softened his tone when he turned to his wife, Melania Trump.

After crediting Melania for her work helping reunite children separated from their families by the war in Ukraine, Trump said, "Melania, thank you so much. She's incredible. She's doing an incredible job." Melania smiled and waved in response.

Outside UN headquarters, hundreds of protesters marched through nearby streets carrying signs and chanting slogans against Trump, beginning before he had even taken the podium.