US President: We worked with countries to implement "comprehensive" reforms at the United Nations

Washington, Sept. 22 (KUNA) -- U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that the United Nations possesses "enormous" potential, while raising a series of criticisms regarding its management style, certain policies, and affiliated institutions. He affirmed that the United States is cooperating with other countries to implement "comprehensive" reforms within the UN system.

In his opening address to the high-level general debate of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly, Trump stated, "We have worked with many of the countries in this hall to implement the most comprehensive UN reforms in history."

Trump added, "For the first time ever, we have reduced the UN budget by 15 percent and eliminated more than 4,000 positions within the UN bureaucracy."

He emphasized that "the United Nations has enormous potential... but it must stop imposing the extreme-left agenda promoted by unelected global bureaucrats."

He noted that his administration "was forced to intervene last year to prevent an obscure UN body, the International Maritime Organization, from secretly imposing a global carbon tax (an exorbitantly costly measure) that would have increased international shipping costs by 10 to 20 percent, or perhaps even more." He stressed that "there is no global government, and as long as I am President, there will be no global taxes."

Trump also expressed the U.S. opposition to the International Criminal Court (ICC) and called on all member states to "formally and immediately withdraw" from it.

On another note, the U.S. President stressed that "there is no human right to illegal immigration, but there is a right to remain a sovereign nation," adding, "We want to remain a sovereign nation, and you must also want that."

Trump expressed the U.S. "complete" rejection of any attempt to build a global scheme to control what is currently known as "artificial intelligence," which he said would henceforth be "officially" referred to as "superintelligence."

In this context, he explained that using the word "artificial" implies that the intelligence is "fake," whereas it is in fact "amazing, though it requires caution."

He stated that "from now on, all U.S. documents will be amended, and we hope the world will follow our lead in using the much more precise term 'super' instead of 'artificial.'"

He noted that "every major new technology brings specific challenges, and superintelligence is no exception. Yet, the same people who said we would all die within 12 years due to global warming, while no one has died, are the same ones now saying that artificial intelligence will destroy us all, that robots will attack us, and that everything will end in certain disaster."

Trump said, "Remember this well: the winner of the superintelligence race is the winner. That is the group that will prevail. We are currently far ahead of China and everyone else, and we will maintain this position."

He added, "We will impose restrictions and controls if necessary, but we will encourage the development of superintelligence. Our goal is to encourage it, not stifle it. We will closely monitor its development through the Department of Justice," stressing that "the United States leads the world in superintelligence and will continue to do so safely and responsibly."

The U.S. President devoted part of his speech to the issue of Iran, stating that his decision to launch a military operation against it stemmed from the fact that "I have no desire to let risks escalate day after day." He added, "I do not believe in letting problems escalate and become more complex, as they become harder to address over time."

He stressed that "there is no clearer example of a danger allowed to build its strength, exposing the entire world to risk, than the Islamic Republic of Iran, which is the foremost sponsor of terrorism."

He affirmed that "after giving Iran every possible opportunity to reach an agreement, we took measures to ensure that the United States or any other country never has to face such a nightmare or this catastrophic problem again."

The U.S. President called on "all countries to join us in imposing complete economic isolation on Iran, countering attacks on commercial navigation, and forcing it to abandon its nuclear ambitions and stop supporting terrorism."

He stressed that "this terrorist regime acts recklessly not because it is strong and confident, but because it is weak and desperate," adding that "if we stand united, we will soon see a world free from the 51-year-old threat of Iranian terrorism, and oil prices will fall to levels even lower than they were at the start of the conflict."

He expressed his belief that "we will reach an agreement immediately after the elections, as it makes no sense for them not to do so."

He continued, "They (the Iranians) are waiting to see how I will perform in the midterm elections. What they do not realize is that I am not a candidate in this election. I have already gone through that experience and won in a landslide... I have paid no attention to the elections, and I will not."

He clarified that regarding the Iranian file, "all that matters to me is that Iran never possesses a nuclear weapon."

The U.S. President also addressed several global issues, including the agreement reached regarding Greenland, as well as security and economic matters in the Western Hemisphere.

He considered drug cartels to be equivalent to the so-called Islamic State (ISIS) for the region.

He stressed that his administration "is asserting U.S. strength in the Western Hemisphere and the world," affirming that it will not allow Cuba to "remain a haven for enemies of the United States."

(End) R.S.R. / M.A.A.