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Make the UN Great? Trump's Big UN Speech Has the World Watching

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President Trump makes his debut speech at the United Nations today. It's an organization he once belittled, but now he says his message is 'make the United Nations great.'

Many U.S. allies are carefully watching President Trump's debut speech at the United Nations today – and so are America's adversaries. North Korea's top diplomat has a front row seat.

Mounting tensions with North Korea are expected to dominate conversations in New York during the six day UN meeting. Secretary General Antonio Guterres calls North Korea "the most dangerous crisis we face today." President Trump will address the rogue nation in his address.

The president is expected to argue that the nations should rally together when faced with common threats like North Korea. It's a marked change from the campaign trail where he suggested that the UN was not a friend to the US and called it weak and incompetent.

In May of 2016 he said, "The United Nations is not a friend of democracy. It's not a friend to freedom. It's not a friend even to the United States of America."

Trump is also expected to talk about Iran's nuclear agenda and the chaos in Venezuela and Syria. In keeping with his campaign comments, he will push for reform at the UN, a point he previewed on Monday when he said "in recent years, the United Nations has not reached its full potential because of bureaucracy and mismanagement.

On one issue, there's no question where the U.S. stands at the UN – taking a strong position in support of Israel.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reinforced that when he met with President Trump on Monday.

Sitting next to the president talking with reporters he said, "Under your leadership the alliance between America and Israel has never been stronger, never been deeper."

Trump said they're working very hard to bring peace between Israel and the Palestinian Authority and said he hopes for "significant progress" by the year's end. He's expected to meet later this week with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas as well as many other world leaders.

Trump will also work to emphasize that his "America First" policy actually works hand-in-hand with international cooperation.

His message: All nations should put their own interests first, and they can also work together when faced with common concerns like threats from terrorists and rogue countries like North Korea.
 

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About The Author

Heather
Sells

Heather Sells covers wide-ranging stories for CBN News that include religious liberty, ministry trends, immigration, and education. She’s known for telling personal stories that capture the issues of the day, from the border sheriff who rescues migrants in the desert to the parents struggling with a child that identifies as transgender. In the last year, she has reported on immigration at the Texas border, from Washington, D.C., in advance of the Dobbs abortion case, at crisis pregnancy centers in Massachusetts, and on sexual abuse reform at the annual Southern Baptist meeting in Anaheim