FULL TEXT OF TRUMPS SPEECH TO UN TODAY
President
Donald Trump's statement to the United Nations General Assembly on Sept. 19,
2017, as prepared for delivery.
Mr. Secretary
General, Mr. President, world leaders, and distinguished delegates: Welcome to
New York. It is a profound honor to stand here in my home city, as a
representative of the American people, to address the people of the world.
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As millions
of our citizens continue to suffer the effects of the devastating hurricanes
that have struck our country, I want to begin by expressing my appreciation to
every leader in this room who has offered assistance and aid. The American
people are strong and resilient, and they will emerge from these hardships more
determined than ever before.
Fortunately,
the United States has done very well since Election Day last November 8th. The
stock market is at an all-time high -- a record. Unemployment is at its lowest
level in 16 years, and because of our regulatory and other reforms, we have
more people working in the United States today than ever before. Companies are
moving back, creating job growth the likes of which our country has not seen in
a very long time. And it has just been announced that we will be spending
almost $700 billion on our military and defense.
Our military
will soon be the strongest it has ever been. For more than 70 years, in times
of war and peace, the leaders of nations, movements, and religions have stood
before this assembly. Like them, I intend to address some of the very serious
threats before us today but also the enormous potential waiting to be
unleashed.
We live in a
time of extraordinary opportunity. Breakthroughs in science, technology, and
medicine are curing illnesses and solving problems that prior generations
thought impossible to solve.
But each day
also brings news of growing dangers that threaten everything we cherish and
value. Terrorists and extremists have gathered strength and spread to every
region of the planet. Rogue regimes represented in this body not only support
terrorists but threaten other nations and their own people with the most
destructive weapons known to humanity.
Authority and
authoritarian powers seek to collapse the values, the systems, and alliances
that prevented conflict and tilted the world toward freedom since World War II.
Trump warns
that major portions of the world ‘are going to hell’
International
criminal networks traffic drugs, weapons, people; force dislocation and mass
migration; threaten our borders; and new forms of aggression exploit technology
to menace our citizens.
To put it
simply, we meet at a time of both of immense promise and great peril. It is
entirely up to us whether we lift the world to new heights, or let it fall into
a valley of disrepair.
We have it in
our power, should we so choose, to lift millions from poverty, to help our
citizens realize their dreams, and to ensure that new generations of children
are raised free from violence, hatred, and fear.
This
institution was founded in the aftermath of two world wars to help shape this
better future. It was based on the vision that diverse nations could cooperate
to protect their sovereignty, preserve their security, and promote their
prosperity.
It was in the
same period, exactly 70 years ago, that the United States developed the
Marshall Plan to help restore Europe. Those three beautiful pillars -- they’re
pillars of peace, sovereignty, security, and prosperity.
The Marshall
Plan was built on the noble idea that the whole world is safer when nations are
strong, independent, and free. As President Truman said in his message to
Congress at that time, “Our support of European recovery is in full accord with
our support of the United Nations. The success of the United Nations depends
upon the independent strength of its members.”
To overcome
the perils of the present and to achieve the promise of the future, we must
begin with the wisdom of the past. Our success depends on a coalition of strong
and independent nations that embrace their sovereignty to promote security,
prosperity, and peace for themselves and for the world.
We do not
expect diverse countries to share the same cultures, traditions, or even
systems of government. But we do expect all nations to uphold these two core
sovereign duties: to respect the interests of their own people and the rights
of every other sovereign nation. This is the beautiful vision of this
institution, and this is foundation for cooperation and success.
Strong,
sovereign nations let diverse countries with different values, different
cultures, and different dreams not just coexist, but work side by side on the
basis of mutual respect.
Strong,
sovereign nations let their people take ownership of the future and control
their own destiny. And strong, sovereign nations allow individuals to flourish
in the fullness of the life intended by God.
In America,
we do not seek to impose our way of life on anyone, but rather to let it shine
as an example for everyone to watch. This week gives our country a special
reason to take pride in that example. We are celebrating the 230th anniversary
of our beloved Constitution -- the oldest constitution still in use in the
world today.
This timeless
document has been the foundation of peace, prosperity, and freedom for the
Americans and for countless millions around the globe whose own countries have
found inspiration in its respect for human nature, human dignity, and the rule
of law.
The greatest
in the United States Constitution is its first three beautiful words. They are:
“We the people.”
Generations
of Americans have sacrificed to maintain the promise of those words, the
promise of our country, and of our great history. In America, the people
govern, the people rule, and the people are sovereign. I was elected not to
take power, but to give power to the American people, where it belongs.
In foreign
affairs, we are renewing this founding principle of sovereignty. Our
government's first duty is to its people, to our citizens -- to serve their
needs, to ensure their safety, to preserve their rights, and to defend their
values.
As President
of the United States, I will always put America first, just like you, as the
leaders of your countries will always, and should always, put your countries
first. (Applause.)
All
responsible leaders have an obligation to serve their own citizens, and the
nation-state remains the best vehicle for elevating the human condition.
But making a
better life for our people also requires us to work together in close harmony
and unity to create a more safe and peaceful future for all people.
The United
States will forever be a great friend to the world, and especially to its
allies. But we can no longer be taken advantage of, or enter into a one-sided
deal where the United States gets nothing in return. 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 that it’s in
everyone’s interest to seek a future where all nations can be sovereign,
prosperous, and secure.
America does
more than speak for the values expressed in the United Nations Charter. Our
citizens have paid the ultimate price to defend our freedom and the freedom of
many nations represented in this great hall. America's devotion is measured on
the battlefields where our young men and women have fought and sacrificed
alongside of our allies, from the beaches of Europe to the deserts of the
Middle East to the jungles of Asia.
It is an
eternal credit to the American character that even after we and our allies
emerged victorious from the bloodiest war in history, we did not seek
territorial expansion, or attempt to oppose and impose our way of life on
others. Instead, we helped build institutions such as this one to defend the
sovereignty, security, and prosperity for all.
For the
diverse nations of the world, this is our hope. We want harmony and friendship,
not conflict and strife. We are guided by outcomes, not ideology. We have a
policy of principled realism, rooted in shared goals, interests, and values.
That realism
forces us to confront a question facing every leader and nation in this room.
It is a question we cannot escape or avoid. We will slide down the path of
complacency, numb to the challenges, threats, and even wars that we face. Or do
we have enough strength and pride to confront those dangers today, so that our
citizens can enjoy peace and prosperity tomorrow?
If we desire
to lift up our citizens, if we aspire to the approval of history, then we must
fulfill our sovereign duties to the people we faithfully represent. We must
protect our nations, their interests, and their futures. We must reject threats
to sovereignty, from the Ukraine to the South China Sea. We must uphold respect
for law, respect for borders, and respect for culture, and the peaceful
engagement these allow. And just as the founders of this body intended, we must
work together and confront together those who threaten us with chaos, turmoil,
and terror.
The scourge
of our planet today is a small group of rogue regimes that violate every
principle on which the United Nations is based. They respect neither their own
citizens nor the sovereign rights of their countries.
If the
righteous many do not confront the wicked few, then evil will triumph. When
decent people and nations become bystanders to history, the forces of
destruction only gather power and strength.
No one has
shown more contempt for other nations and for the wellbeing of their own people
than the depraved regime in North Korea. It is responsible for the starvation
deaths of millions of North Koreans, and for the imprisonment, torture,
killing, and oppression of countless more.
We were all
witness to the regime's deadly abuse when an innocent American college student,
Otto Warmbier, was returned to America only to die a few days later. We saw it
in the assassination of the dictator's brother using banned nerve agents in an
international airport. We know it kidnapped a sweet 13-year-old Japanese girl
from a beach in her own country to enslave her as a language tutor for North
Korea's spies.
If this is
not twisted enough, now North Korea's reckless pursuit of nuclear weapons and
ballistic missiles threatens the entire world with unthinkable loss of human
life.
It is an
outrage that some nations would not only trade with such a regime, but would
arm, supply, and financially support a country that imperils the world with
nuclear conflict. No nation on earth has an interest in seeing this band of
criminals arm itself with nuclear weapons and missiles.
The United
States 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. Rocket
Man is on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime. The United States
is ready, willing and able, but hopefully this will not be necessary. That’s
what the United Nations is all about; that’s what the United Nations is for.
Let’s see how they do.
It is time
for North Korea to realize that the denuclearization is its only acceptable
future. The United Nations Security Council recently held two unanimous 15-0
votes adopting hard-hitting resolutions against North Korea, and I want to
thank China and Russia for joining the vote to impose sanctions, along with all
of the other members of the Security Council. Thank you to all involved.
But we must
do much more. It is time for all nations to work together to isolate the Kim
regime until it ceases its hostile behavior.
We face this
decision not only in North Korea. It is far past time for the nations of the
world to confront another reckless regime -- one that speaks openly of mass
murder, vowing death to America, destruction to Israel, and ruin for many
leaders and nations in this room.
The Iranian
government masks a corrupt dictatorship behind the false guise of a democracy.
It has turned a wealthy country with a rich history and culture into an
economically depleted rogue state whose chief exports are violence, bloodshed,
and chaos. The longest-suffering victims of Iran's leaders are, in fact, its
own people.
Rather than
use its resources to improve Iranian lives, its oil profits go to fund
Hezbollah and other terrorists that kill innocent Muslims and attack their
peaceful Arab and Israeli neighbors. This wealth, which rightly belongs to
Iran's people, also goes to shore up Bashar al-Assad's dictatorship, fuel
Yemen's civil war, and undermine peace throughout the entire Middle East.
We cannot let
a murderous regime continue these destabilizing activities while building
dangerous missiles, and we cannot abide by an agreement if it provides cover
for the eventual construction of a nuclear program. (Applause.) The Iran Deal
was one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the United States has ever
entered into. Frankly, that deal is an embarrassment to the United States, and
I don’t think you’ve heard the last of it -- believe me.
It is time
for the entire world to join us in demanding that Iran's government end its
pursuit of death and destruction. It is time for the regime to free all
Americans and citizens of other nations that they have unjustly detained. And
above all, Iran's government must stop supporting terrorists, begin serving its
own people, and respect the sovereign rights of its neighbors.
The entire
world understands that the good people of Iran want change, and, other than the
vast military power of the United States, that Iran's people are what their leaders
fear the most. This is what causes the regime to restrict Internet access, tear
down satellite dishes, shoot unarmed student protestors, and imprison political
reformers.
Oppressive
regimes cannot endure forever, and the day will come when the Iranian people
will face a choice. Will they continue down the path of poverty, bloodshed, and
terror? Or will the Iranian people return to the nation's proud roots as a
center of civilization, culture, and wealth where their people can be happy and
prosperous once again?
The Iranian
regime's support for terror is in stark contrast to the recent commitments of
many of its neighbors to fight terrorism and halt its financing.
In Saudi
Arabia early last year, I was greatly honored to address the leaders of more than
50 Arab and Muslim nations. We agreed that all responsible nations must work
together to confront terrorists and the Islamist extremism that inspires them.
We will stop
radical Islamic terrorism because we cannot allow it to tear up our nation, and
indeed to tear up the entire world.
We must deny
the terrorists safe haven, transit, funding, and any form of support for their
vile and sinister ideology. We must drive them out of our nations. It is time
to expose and hold responsible those countries who support and finance terror
groups like al Qaeda, Hezbollah, the Taliban and others that slaughter innocent
people.
The United
States and our allies are working together throughout the Middle East to crush
the loser terrorists and stop the reemergence of safe havens they use to launch
attacks on all of our people.
Last month, I
announced a new strategy for victory in the fight against this evil in
Afghanistan. From now on, our security interests will dictate the length and
scope of military operations, not arbitrary benchmarks and timetables set up by
politicians.
I have also
totally changed the rules of engagement in our fight against the Taliban and
other terrorist groups. In Syria and Iraq, we have made big gains toward
lasting defeat of ISIS. In fact, our country has achieved more against ISIS in
the last eight months than it has in many, many years combined.
We seek the
de-escalation of the Syrian conflict, and a political solution that honors the
will of the Syrian people. The actions of the criminal regime of Bashar
al-Assad, including the use of chemical weapons against his own citizens --
even innocent children -- shock the conscience of every decent person. No
society can be safe if banned chemical weapons are allowed to spread. That is
why the United States carried out a missile strike on the airbase that launched
the attack.
We appreciate
the efforts of United Nations agencies that are providing vital humanitarian
assistance in areas liberated from ISIS, and we especially thank Jordan, Turkey
and Lebanon for their role in hosting refugees from the Syrian conflict.
The United
States is a compassionate nation and has spent billions and billions of dollars
in helping to support this effort. We seek an approach to refugee resettlement
that is designed to help these horribly treated people, and which enables their
eventual return to their home countries, to be part of the rebuilding process.
For the cost
of resettling one refugee in the United States, we can assist more than 10 in
their home region. Out of the goodness of our hearts, we offer financial
assistance to hosting countries in the region, and we support recent agreements
of the G20 nations that will seek to host refugees as close to their home
countries as possible. This is the safe, responsible, and humanitarian
approach.
For decades,
the United States has dealt with migration challenges here in the Western
Hemisphere. We have learned that, over the long term, uncontrolled migration is
deeply unfair to both the sending and the receiving countries.
For the
sending countries, it reduces domestic pressure to pursue needed political and
economic reform, and drains them of the human capital necessary to motivate and
implement those reforms.
For the
receiving countries, the substantial costs of uncontrolled migration are borne
overwhelmingly by low-income citizens whose concerns are often ignored by both
media and government.
I want to
salute the work of the United Nations in seeking to address the problems that
cause people to flee from their homes. The United Nations and African Union led
peacekeeping missions to have invaluable contributions in stabilizing conflicts
in Africa. The United States continues to lead the world in humanitarian
assistance, including famine prevention and relief in South Sudan, Somalia, and
northern Nigeria and Yemen.
We have
invested in better health and opportunity all over the world through programs
like PEPFAR, which funds AIDS relief; the President's Malaria Initiative; the
Global Health Security Agenda; the Global Fund to End Modern Slavery; and the
Women Entrepreneurs Finance Initiative, part of our commitment to empowering
women all across the globe.
We also thank
-- (applause) -- we also thank the Secretary General for recognizing that the
United Nations must reform if it is to be an effective partner in confronting
threats to sovereignty, security, and prosperity. Too often the focus of this
organization has not been on results, but on bureaucracy and process.
In some
cases, states that seek to subvert this institution's noble aims have hijacked
the very systems that are supposed to advance them. For example, it is a
massive source of embarrassment to the United Nations that some governments
with egregious human rights records sit on the U.N. Human Rights Council.
The United
States is one out of 193 countries in the United Nations, and yet we pay 22
percent of the entire budget and more. In fact, we pay far more than anybody
realizes. The United States bears an unfair cost burden, but, to be fair, if it
could actually accomplish all of its stated goals, especially the goal of
peace, this investment would easily be well worth it.
Major
portions of the world are in conflict and some, in fact, are going to hell. But
the powerful people in this room, under the guidance and auspices of the United
Nations, can solve many of these vicious and complex problems.
The American
people hope that one day soon the United Nations can be a much more accountable
and effective advocate for human dignity and freedom around the world. In the
meantime, we believe that no nation should have to bear a disproportionate
share of the burden, militarily or financially. Nations of the world must take
a greater role in promoting secure and prosperous societies in their own
regions.
That is why
in the Western Hemisphere, the United States has stood against the corrupt and
destabilizing regime in Cuba and embraced the enduring dream of the Cuban
people to live in freedom. My administration recently announced that we will
not lift sanctions on the Cuban government until it makes fundamental reforms.
We have also
imposed tough, calibrated sanctions on the socialist Maduro regime in
Venezuela, which has brought a once thriving nation to the brink of total
collapse.
The socialist
dictatorship of Nicolas Maduro has inflicted terrible pain and suffering on the
good people of that country. This corrupt regime destroyed a prosperous nation
by imposing a failed ideology that has produced poverty and misery everywhere
it has been tried. To make matters worse, Maduro has defied his own people,
stealing power from their elected representatives to preserve his disastrous
rule.
The
Venezuelan people are starving and their country is collapsing. Their democratic
institutions are being destroyed. This situation is completely unacceptable and
we cannot stand by and watch.
As a
responsible neighbor and friend, we and all others have a goal. That goal is to
help them regain their freedom, recover their country, and restore their
democracy. I would like to thank leaders in this room for condemning the regime
and providing vital support to the Venezuelan people.
The United
States has taken important steps to hold the regime accountable. We are
prepared to take further action if the government of Venezuela persists on its
path to impose authoritarian rule on the Venezuelan people.
We are
fortunate to have incredibly strong and healthy trade relationships with many
of the Latin American countries gathered here today. Our economic bond forms a
critical foundation for advancing peace and prosperity for all of our people
and all of our neighbors.
I ask every
country represented here today to be prepared to do more to address this very
real crisis. We call for the full restoration of democracy and political
freedoms in Venezuela. (Applause.)
The problem
in Venezuela is not that socialism has been poorly implemented, but that
socialism has been faithfully implemented. (Applause.) From the Soviet Union to
Cuba to Venezuela, wherever true socialism or communism has been adopted, it
has delivered anguish and devastation and failure. Those who preach the tenets
of these discredited ideologies only contribute to the continued suffering of
the people who live under these cruel systems.
America
stands with every person living under a brutal regime. Our respect for
sovereignty is also a call for action. All people deserve a government that
cares for their safety, their interests, and their wellbeing, including their
prosperity.
In America,
we seek stronger ties of business and trade with all nations of good will, but
this trade must be fair and it must be reciprocal.
For too long,
the American people were told that mammoth multinational trade deals,
unaccountable international tribunals, and powerful global bureaucracies were
the best way to promote their success. But as those promises flowed, millions
of jobs vanished and thousands of factories disappeared. Others gamed the
system and broke the rules. And our great middle class, once the bedrock of
American prosperity, was forgotten and left behind, but they are forgotten no
more and they will never be forgotten again.
While America
will pursue cooperation and commerce with other nations, we are renewing our
commitment to the first duty of every government: the duty of our citizens.
This bond is the source of America's strength and that of every responsible
nation represented here today.
If this
organization is to have any hope of successfully confronting the challenges
before us, it will depend, as President Truman said some 70 years ago, on the
"independent strength of its members." If we are to embrace the
opportunities of the future and overcome the present dangers together, there
can be no substitute for strong, sovereign, and independent nations -- nations
that are rooted in their histories and invested in their destinies; nations
that seek allies to befriend, not enemies to conquer; and most important of
all, nations that are home to patriots, to men and women who are willing to
sacrifice for their countries, their fellow citizens, and for all that is best
in the human spirit.
In
remembering the great victory that led to this body's founding, we must never
forget that those heroes who fought against evil also fought for the nations
that they loved.
Patriotism
led the Poles to die to save Poland, the French to fight for a free France, and
the Brits to stand strong for Britain.
Today, if we
do not invest ourselves, our hearts, and our minds in our nations, if we will
not build strong families, safe communities, and healthy societies for
ourselves, no one can do it for us.
We cannot
wait for someone else, for faraway countries or far-off bureaucrats -- we can't
do it. We must solve our problems, to build our prosperity, to secure our
futures, or we will be vulnerable to decay, domination, and defeat.
The true
question for the United Nations today, for people all over the world who hope
for better lives for themselves and their children, is a basic one: Are we
still patriots? Do we love our nations enough to protect their sovereignty and
to take ownership of their futures? Do we revere them enough to defend their
interests, preserve their cultures, and ensure a peaceful world for their
citizens?
One of the
greatest American patriots, John Adams, wrote that the American Revolution was
"effected before the war commenced. The Revolution was in the minds and
hearts of the people."
That was the
moment when America awoke, when we looked around and understood that we were a
nation. We realized who we were, what we valued, and what we would give our
lives to defend. From its very first moments, the American story is the story
of what is possible when people take ownership of their future.
The United
States of America has been among the greatest forces for good in the history of
the world, and the greatest defenders of sovereignty, security, and prosperity
for all.
Now we are
calling for a great reawakening of nations, for the revival of their spirits,
their pride, their people, and their patriotism.
History is
asking us whether we are up to the task. Our answer will be a renewal of will,
a rediscovery of resolve, and a rebirth of devotion. We need to defeat the
enemies of humanity and unlock the potential of life itself.
Our hope is a
word and world of proud, independent nations that embrace their duties, seek
friendship, respect others, and make common cause in the greatest shared
interest of all: a future of dignity and peace for the people of this wonderful
Earth.
This is the
true vision of the United Nations, the ancient wish of every people, and the
deepest yearning that lives inside every sacred soul.
So let this
be our mission, and let this be our message to the world: We will fight
together, sacrifice together, and stand together for peace, for freedom, for
justice, for family, for humanity, and for the almighty God who made us all.
Thank you.
God bless you. God bless the nations of the world. And God bless the United
States of America. Thank you very much.
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