Trump blazes trails with historic first speech
Trump's speech put an end to George W. Bush-era rhetoric to put Pyongyang, Iran, Venezuela and Cuba on notice.
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In his usual disruptive, nationalistic persona, Trump put an end to US political norms and indicated an attempt to transform the role of America in the world as well as trhe international scene.
"We must work together and confront together those who threaten us with chaos, turmoil and terror," Trump said, addressing the global geopolitics that has paralleled his blunt inaugural address eight months ago.
Standing in the well of the UN chamber and threatening to wipe North Korea off the face of the planet, Trump pulled off a feat none of his predecessors have been able to.
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His speech put an end to George W. Bush-era rhetoric to put Pyongyang, Iran, Venezuela and Cuba on notice.
"It certainly was, in many ways quite a groundbreaking speech," said Nile Gardiner, an analyst at the conservative Heritage Foundation, praising Trump's "assertive and aggressive" delivery and for setting a tone different from the "deferential" multilateral doctrine of the Obama administration.
However, many have criticized the fact that Trump did not mention global warming, the threat most sees as paramount.
Foreign leaders already seem wary of Trump's approach and as always with Trump there are questions of constancy and tone.
He has been known to contradict his values with spontaneous rants on social media.
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He has already garnered interest by toasting the "potential" of the UN on Tuesday, after being known for railing against the organization for years.
Taken at face value, Tuesday's speech might be seen by history as a signature moment in the Trump presidency.
The former real estate magnate effectively drew a line under 70 years of US leadership that has generally sought to rally the world behind a common vision of internationalism.
He offered "principled realism," allowing "sovereign" nation-states the right to pursue their own self-interests without being influnced by bureaucracy, global trade deals or multilateralism.
This vision is not only part and parcel of Trump's political principles but also reflects how he has lived his life.
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According to CNN, Trump's 41-minute address may mark the moment that dictates a course for US policy towards North Korea and Iran.
"The United States has great strength and patience, but if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea," he said.
Although the President's threat seemed to be a simple reiteration of the vow that the US would respond with all vehemence if a nuclear weapon was ever used against the US or its allies, but his threat of using nuclear weapons was chilling coming from an American president.
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