'USA trying to topple our govt,' charges Iran in UN war of words
United Nations: US President Donald Trump called for Iran's international isolation in a combative and unashamedly boastful speech at the United Nations General Assembly Tuesday, prompting accusations from his Iranian counterpart that he was trying to topple his government.
In his second appearance before the General Assembly, Trump also lashed out at other adversaries such as Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro and took aim at international institutions such as the UN-backed world court.
He even provoked derisive laughter from fellow leaders at the normally staid assembly by trumpeting the performance of his administration whose "America First" foreign policy continues to cause alarm.
But Trump also had warm words for the main target of his rhetoric at his UN debut last year as he praised the "courage" of North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un.
Hours before Iran's President Hassan Rouhani spoke from the same rostrum, Trump denounced the clerical regime in Tehran for sowing "chaos, death and destruction" as he defended his decision to ditch an internationally-brokered nuclear deal.
"We cannot allow the world's leading sponsor of terrorism to possess the planet's most dangerous weapons," Trump said, alluding to Tehran's support for Islamic militant movements such as Hamas and Hezbollah.
"We ask all nations to isolate Iran's regime as long as its aggression continues."
Trump withdrew from the nuclear deal in May, to the dismay of the other parties that had invested years in negotiations to keep Iran's nuclear ambitions in check.
In his address, Rouhani stressed Tehran's continued commitment to the deal and ridiculed Trump as a "preposterous" leader who was himself isolated.
In a sign of how some allies are unwilling to automatically follow Trump's lead, the five remaining parties to the agreement -- Britain, China, France, Germany and Russia -- announced Monday plans to keep business ties alive with Iran, staring down Washington's move to impose sanctions.
Trump's Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, addressing an anti-Iran pressure group, said he was "disturbed and indeed deeply disappointed" by the EU announcement.
"This is one of the of the most counterproductive measures imaginable for regional and global peace and security," Pompeo said.
