Analysis: Trump's U.N. trip sets up showdown with Iran and North Korea over nukes
CLOSE
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday the United States will add more sanctions against North Korea, while U.S. allies have called for enforcing existing international sanctions as the best way to get Pyongyang to give up its nuclear weapons.
Time
NEW YORK — It’s not every year at the United Nations that an American president condemns one country as “a murderous regime” and threatens another with nuclear destruction — but Donald Trump has never been one to stick to diplomatic norms.
Few American presidents have made the history books during annual trips to the United Nations General Assembly. Yet the former New York businessman’s foray into a 193-country diplomatic minefield will likely be remembered for its unusual and unadorned attacks on Iran and North Korea that could set the stage for months or even years of nuclear-fueled tension and uncertainty.
Trump’s rhetoric “left a lot of people scratching their heads,” said Richard Fontaine, president of the Washington-based Center for a New American Security think tank.  “So where do we go from here?”
Trump did make some headway Thursday on his push to pressure North Korea to back off its weapons program, announcing a new executive order designed to crack down on anyone who does business with the hermit nation.Â
Yet it was Trump’s threats to “totally destroy” North Korea — and his casual “Rocket Man” nickname for the leader of the rogue nation — that drew headlines and fueled chatter on the sidelines of the United Nations after his Tuesday speech to the General Assembly.
Some allies are concerned about the war-of-words from both Trump and North Korea and want to see more of a diplomatic focus on pressuring Kim Jong Un’s government into giving up his nuclear weapons program.Â
With his Trumpian brash style, the president on Tuesday also accused Iran of trying to develop nuclear weapons despite the agreement it signed with the U.S. and other world powers, which he called an “embarrassment” to the United States.
Read more:
At U.N., Trump says he will sign new executive order to pressure North Korea
Trump says he’s made a decision on Iran nuclear deal – but won’t reveal what it is
Yet other U.S. allies who are signatories to the Obama-era agreement — including France, Germany, the European Union — disputed Trump’s claims, saying Iran is in compliance and insisting that voiding the deal would wind up encouraging the Iranians to seek nukes.Â
“He gave a speech that satisfied his domestic base and alienated a lot of his foreign counterparts,” said Richard Gowan, a United Nations expert with the European Council on Foreign Relations.
It’s not the first time Trump has created waves. At international forums earlier this year, Trump disputed other leaders over the role of NATO and the value of the Paris climate change agreement, from which he is withdrawing the United States.
And now, with an Oct. 15 deadline to re-certify the Iran deal his predecessor Barack Obama signed in 2015, Trump appears to be turning his decision-making process into a kind of diplomatic reality show. On Monday, the former host of The Apprentice said he would make a decision “very soon.” By Wednesday, Trump said he had made up his mind but wouldn’t reveal his secret — even to British Prime Minister Theresa May, who asked him directly. Â
Trump tried to make headway on other diplomatic fronts, with limited success. He pushed to restart long-stalled Middle East peace talks in meetings with Israel and the Palestinian Authority, describing it as the toughest deal of all.
The president also talked about business opportunities in Africa, though his comment that many of his friends had gone to the continent “trying to get rich” conjured old visions of western colonialism and drew a stony silence from African leaders.
Trump also mispronounced the name of the African nation Namibia, calling it “Nambia,” which also earned some scorn from social media commentators who accused the president of being tone-deaf.
In a bid to reassure allies, Trump spent time this week telling other world leaders that his “America First” foreign policy does not preclude working with other countries on major challenges, particularly terrorism.Â
All countries need to stick up for their own “sovereignty” and put their own citizens first, Trump said, though he suggested the United Nations take action against anti-democratic governments in Venezuela and Cuba, as confront the nuclear issues in North Korea and Iran.
“We have had a very productive and strong week,” said Nikki Haley, Trump’s ambassador to the United Nations, adding that delegates appreciated “how blunt and honest” Trump was on North Korea and other issues.
Read more:
At U.N., Trump threatens to ‘totally destroy North Korea’ if it continues on nuclear path
North Korea says Trump’s U.N. speech sounded like ‘dog barking’
Analysis: At U.N., Trump calls for a ‘great reawakening of nations’ to confront evil
Yet Trump’s campaign-style bombast did not play well with some members of his international audience, especially the threat against North Korea. If the U.S. was forced to defend itself or its allies, Trump said, “we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea.”
In response, German Chancellor Angela Merkel told broadcaster Deutsche Welle, “I am against such threats.”Â
Merkel, who stayed away from the United Nations this year due to her re-election campaign in Germany, said “we consider any form of military solution as totally inappropriate and we insist on a diplomatic solution.”Â
Trump and aides said they also do not want war with North Korea, and hope that economic pressure will persuade Kim to drop his nuclear weapons program.  The administration will pressure other countries to follow Trump’s lead and impose new economic sanctions, particularly China. The Trump team is also seeking tougher sanctions from the United Nations, including a full oil embargo on North Korea.
North Korea, meanwhile, has threatened to retaliate for sanctions. And while North Korea mocked his rhetoric — “If he was thinking he could scare us with the sound of a dog barking, that’s really a dog dream,” its foreign minister said — some analysts wonder whether Kim’s government will only ratchet up its nuclear program.Â
If anything, Trump was even harsher in his denunciation of the Iran nuclear agreement, comments that drew barbs from other countries who signed the deal.Â
Under the agreement the Obama administration signed in 2015, Iran agreed to give up the means to make nuclear weapons as the United States and allies agreed to reduce long-imposed sanctions. In his speech at the U.N., Trump said that “we cannot abide by an agreement if it provides cover for the eventual construction of a nuclear program.”Â
Yet French President Emmanuel Macron made a strong case for the agreement at the U.N., saying Iran was in compliance and scrapping the deal could set off a nuclear arms race in the Middle East. “It would be a mistake to abandon the agreement without anything else,” he said.Â
Federica Mogherini, the European Union foreign policy chief, says all signatories of the Iran nuclear deal agree that the accord is being implemented as planned — and U.S. complaints about other Iranian behavior should be discussed outside the context of the agreement.
Trump does have options. If he does not re-certify the deal, Congress would still have 60 days to decide whether or not to re-impose sanctions on the Tehran regime. Or, Trump could choose to re-certify this time, as he did in July, but say he would refuse to do in another 90 days unless the deal is re-negotiated.
Macron, for one, said he is willing to look at a re-negotiation, including a call for new restrictions on Iranian ballistic missiles. In addition to the U.S. and France, China, Russia, the United Kingdom, Germany and the European Union are the other signatories to the deal.Â
Iran, however, said it signed the agreement in good faith, and re-negotiations are not an option.Â
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said the United States would be the one violating the agreement, and he denounced Trump’s “ignorant, absurd and hateful rhetoric filled with ridiculously baseless allegations.”Â
Posted!
1 of 90
2 of 90
3 of 90
4 of 90
5 of 90
6 of 90
7 of 90
8 of 90
9 of 90
10 of 90
11 of 90
12 of 90
13 of 90
14 of 90
15 of 90
16 of 90
17 of 90
18 of 90
19 of 90
20 of 90
21 of 90
22 of 90
23 of 90
24 of 90
25 of 90
26 of 90
27 of 90
28 of 90
29 of 90
30 of 90
31 of 90
32 of 90
33 of 90
34 of 90
35 of 90
36 of 90
37 of 90
38 of 90
39 of 90
40 of 90
41 of 90
42 of 90
43 of 90
44 of 90
45 of 90
46 of 90
47 of 90
48 of 90
49 of 90
50 of 90
51 of 90
52 of 90
53 of 90
54 of 90
55 of 90
56 of 90
57 of 90
58 of 90
59 of 90
60 of 90
61 of 90
62 of 90
63 of 90
64 of 90
65 of 90
66 of 90
67 of 90
68 of 90
69 of 90
70 of 90
71 of 90
72 of 90
73 of 90
74 of 90
75 of 90
76 of 90
77 of 90
78 of 90
79 of 90
80 of 90
81 of 90
82 of 90
83 of 90
84 of 90
85 of 90
86 of 90
87 of 90
88 of 90
89 of 90
90 of 90
Â