UNITED NATIONS — Donald Trump has accused the United Nations of staging a “triple sabotage” during his high-profile appearance at the General Assembly this week, after a series of embarrassing mishaps left the former president fuming.
The incidents included an escalator suddenly stopping as Mr Trump and First Lady Melania Trump stepped on, a faulty teleprompter during his address, and audio problems inside the main hall.
On his Truth Social platform, Mr Trump called the glitches “a REAL DISGRACE” and “not one, not two, but three very sinister events.” He said he would write to Secretary General António Guterres demanding an immediate investigation.
“This wasn’t a coincidence, this was triple sabotage at the UN. They ought to be ashamed of themselves,” he wrote.
White House officials and American diplomats echoed his anger. Mike Waltz, the US ambassador to the UN, said the episodes were “unacceptable” and demanded “swift cooperation and decisive action.” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt went further, suggesting the escalator may have been deliberately stopped. “If someone at the UN intentionally stopped the escalator as the President and First Lady were stepping on, they need to be fired and investigated immediately,” she wrote on X.
The UN pushed back. Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for Mr Guterres, said the president’s own videographer may have triggered the safety mechanism by walking backwards on the escalator to capture footage. On the teleprompter glitch, a UN official explained that the equipment belonged to the US delegation, which had connected its laptops to the UN system.
Mr Trump mocked the malfunction during his speech. “I can only say that whoever’s operating this teleprompter is in big trouble,” he told delegates, before the device was restored later in his address.
He also complained about sound problems in the auditorium, saying that without earpieces “world leaders couldn’t hear a thing.” The UN dismissed that claim, noting that the hall’s audio system is designed to channel speeches into six official languages via headsets.
For Mr Trump, who has long styled himself as a sceptic of multilateral institutions, the string of glitches provided fresh ammunition. Whether world leaders saw them as sabotage or simply as technical hiccups, however, remains far less clear.
About the Author
