At the United Nations, President Donald Trump offered a revealing demonstration of American power: pressure, dialogue, and the leverage to know when to use each.
For one week every September, New York becomes the capital of the world. Motorcades replace taxis, presidents replace tourists, and behind the speeches at the United Nations, governments search for meetings that may matter more than the speeches themselves. This year, the stakes were particularly high: war with Iran, the continuing war in Ukraine, instability across the Middle East, tensions with China, and growing doubts about whether international institutions can still manage a world increasingly shaped by hard power.
