UPDATE - Trump issues broadside against UN at General Assembly

ADDS DETAILS THROUGHOUT

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - US President Donald Trump sharply rebuked the United Nations on Tuesday, telling world leaders that the international body is failing to live up to its potential and is facilitating undocumented migration as it pursues a "globalist" agenda.

Trump bemoaned what he said was the UN's lack of assistance as he brokered resolutions to seven conflicts, including between Azerbaijan and Armenia, Cambodia and Thailand, and Israel and Iran.

"No president or prime minister, and for that matter, no other country, has ever done anything close to that, and I did it in just seven months. It's never happened before," he said during an hour-long address at the UN's New York headquarters.

"There's never been anything like that, very honored to have done it. It's too bad that I had to do these things instead of the United Nations doing them. And sadly, in all cases, the United Nations did not even try to help in any of them," he added.

The UN, Trump said, "has such tremendous, tremendous potential, but it's not even coming close to living up to that potential for the most part." He accused the world body of not just failing to resolve disputes, but "actually creating new problems for us to solve."

"The best example is the number one political issue of our time, the crisis of uncontrolled migration. It's uncontrolled. Your countries are being ruined," he told the leaders. "The United Nations is funding an assault on Western countries and their borders."

The US president made specific mention of Europe, alleging that migration to the continent has "been invaded by a force of illegal aliens like nobody's ever seen." He pointed specifically to London, the city led by Muslim Mayor Sadiq Khan, alleging that the UK's largest city wants "to go to shariah law."

"But you're in a different country. You can't do that. Both the immigration and their suicidal energy ideas will be the death of Western Europe," he said, alluding to earlier criticism he made of Europe's effort to move away from fossil fuels amid a worsening global climate crisis.

Trump ridiculed past climate change predictions, calling warnings "the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world, in my opinion."

The US president struck a markedly more measured tone when he sat down with Secretary-General Antonio Guterres after his address, telling the UN's leader that "our country is behind the United Nations 100%."

"I think the potential of the United Nations is incredible. Really incredible. It can do so much. I’m behind it. I may disagree with it sometimes but I am so behind it," he said. ​​​​​​​