Trump to tout deals, defend war with Iran in UN speech

U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to claim he is winning both on the battlefield and as a peacemaker on Tuesday (September 22, 2026) in a speech to the United Nations overshadowed by growing spillover from his stalled war against Iran.

Mr. Trump will likely not hold back in renewing his frequent boasts that under him the United States is "the hottest country" in the world. He is also expected to seek to justify the Iran war, which has so far failed to fulfil White House objectives and provoked widespread economic damage over the Strait of Hormuz's closure.

But the self-styled peacemaker could equally use the UN stage to tout his controversial efforts to end the Gaza conflict and his ongoing effort to bring more Arab countries into the Abraham Accords with Israel.