Trump defends military action in UN speech, warns he could 'annihilate' Iran without peace deal

During his address to the 81st UN General Assembly on September 22, 2026, US President Donald Trump defended his militaristic foreign policy, warning he could quickly "annihilate" Iran if no peace deal is reached. Trump rejected global AI regulations, rebranded the technology as "superintelligence," and defended US military actions in Venezuela. Fact-checkers and official reports quickly disputed several of his claims, including his assertions of unlimited US munitions, his role in settling eight wars, and his claim that the US and Venezuela control 60% of global oil.

Diplomacy and Threats Regarding Iran

• ▪During his 81st United Nations General Assembly speech on September 22, 2026, US President Donald Trump warned he could "annihilate" Iran if no peace deal is reached to end the ongoing war.
• ▪US President Donald Trump predicted that his administration would strike a peace deal with Iran following the US midterm elections on November 3, 2026.
• ▪US President Donald Trump stated on September 22, 2026, that special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner had held a productive meeting with mediators of Iran.

US Munitions and Inventory Depletion

• ▪A May 2026 Center for Strategic and International Studies report projected that rebuilding the US inventory of heavily-used Patriot, THAAD, and Tomahawk munitions would take several years.
• ▪US President Donald Trump asserted that the United States has more munitions than it could ever think of using and is building them at unprecedented levels.
• ▪Reports from the Department of Defense Inspector General and the Congressional Budget Office in September 2026 indicated that Trump's war with Iran has depleted US missile interceptor inventories

US Intervention in Venezuela

• ▪US President Donald Trump defended US military actions in Venezuela, stating that the United States will no longer permit threats to America to gain a foothold in the Western Hemisphere.
• ▪US President Donald Trump falsely claimed that the United States and Venezuela combined control more than 60 percent of the world's oil reserves.
• ▪US President Donald Trump boasted about US control over Venezuelan oil following the toppling of Venezuela's government by US forces, stating "to the victor belong the spoils."

Stance on Artificial Intelligence

• ▪US President Donald Trump announced that all United States documents would transition to using the term "superintelligence" instead of artificial intelligence.
• ▪US President Donald Trump dismissed warnings about artificial intelligence risks, comparing them to warnings about global warming, which he characterized as a hoax.
• ▪US President Donald Trump stated that the United States totally rejects any globalist scheme to control artificial intelligence and will not stifle its growth.

Global Conflict Mediation

• ▪US President Donald Trump helped end a brief 2025 conflict between Israel and Iran, before the United States and Israel began a new war against Iran in 2026.
• ▪US President Donald Trump falsely claimed in his September 22, 2026, United Nations speech that he had settled eight wars since taking office.

Economic Claims

• ▪US President Donald Trump claimed his administration secured $21 trillion in new investment commitments, but the White House website listed the figure as $11.2 trillion.
• ▪US President Donald Trump claimed his administration created over one million private-sector jobs, but the United States actually added about 807,000 jobs since his second term began in 2025.

Debatable claims

• ▪The United States should end its military conflict with Iran
• ▪US military personnel should be exempt from International Criminal Court jurisdiction
• ▪The US should reject global regulations on artificial intelligence
• ▪The US is justified in seizing Venezuela's oil reserves