Trump Returns to the UN Facing a Skeptical World: Six Months of War with Iran, No End in Sight

When U.S. President Donald Trump last spoke before the United Nations General Assembly, he described the bombing of Iranian nuclear facilities as the “total destruction of everything” and declared that he had brought peace between Israel and Iran. When he takes the same podium in New York on Tuesday, he will face a deeply skeptical audience, increasingly worried by six months of war between American forces and an empowered Iran, rising regional instability and a nuclear threat that has not disappeared despite his declarations.

Despite military and economic blows, Tehran has remained defiant, obstructing oil transport through the Strait of Hormuz — and in recent days has gained new leverage, as its Houthi allies in Yemen have tightened control over the key Red Sea strait, raising the global price of energy again. The Houthis’ rapid advance has put Trump in an ever-tighter bind over the unpopular conflict, dealt a blow to his Saudi ally and exposed the limits of Washington’s ability to protect regional partners.

Most European and Asian allies have refused Trump’s requests for help in a conflict he launched without consulting them and which has had serious economic consequences for them. With high gasoline prices in the U.S. and his low approval ratings, Trump risks paying a political price in November’s midterm elections, where Republican control of Congress is at stake.

“We’re seeing what happens when a president starts an elective war without anticipating the unintended consequences,” said Aaron David Miller, former Middle East policy adviser for Republican and Democratic administrations. In his speech, Trump will likely present as a victory once more a military campaign he promised would be over in weeks. The conflict, instead, has hardened into an unstable quagmire that has not achieved its goals and has depleted the Pentagon’s missile stockpiles.

Source: Reuters — https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/iran-war-grinds-trump-face-skeptical-world-leaders-un-2026-09-18/