Donald Trump Makes Disputed Claims at UN General Assembly

President Donald Trump delivered an address to the United Nations General Assembly on September 22, 2026, where he defended U.S. military force in Iran and Venezuela and proposed replacing the term artificial intelligence with superintelligence in official documents. During the speech, delegations from Cuba and Iran walked out of the assembly. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian traveled to the city to address the body the following day.

Fact-checks of the address indicate several misleading claims regarding national security and resources. Trump asserted that the United States possesses unprecedented munitions levels, but military officials report a beyond critical shortage of advanced missile interceptors in Europe. He further claimed that combined U.S. and Venezuelan oil reserves exceed 60% of the global total, while data indicates the actual figure is approximately 22%.

Other disputed assertions included the claim that the U.S. destroyed 97% of drugs entering via sea, a figure experts say is impossible to verify. Trump also claimed to have settled eight wars, created over 1 million private sector jobs, and secured $21 trillion in global investment commitments. Separately, Secretary of State Marco Rubio used a State Department report on Cuban influence to justify an oil embargo and economic sanctions.