President Donald Trump has called for a formal probe into what he described as “triple sabotage” during his visit to the United Nations. The former U.S. leader alleged that an escalator malfunction, a faulty teleprompter, and other glitches were deliberate attempts to undermine him at the high-profile gathering.
Trump said he had written a letter to UN Secretary-General António Guterres after what he claimed were three deliberate attempts to undermine him: a halted escalator, a malfunctioning teleprompter, and sound system glitches.
The incidents began shortly before his address on Tuesday. As Trump and First Lady Melania Trump entered the UN headquarters, an escalator they stepped onto suddenly stopped, forcing them to walk the rest of the way. Trump initially laughed it off during his speech, joking about the “bad” teleprompter and technical issues.
But by Wednesday, the former president had shifted tone, declaring the events “very sinister” and accusing unknown actors of endangering him and his wife. “It’s amazing that Melania and I didn’t fall forward onto the sharp edges of these steel steps, face first. It was only that we were each holding the handrail tightly or it would have been a disaster,” Trump wrote in a post.
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He also cited a report in The Sunday Times claiming that some UN staff had previously joked about shutting down escalators to humiliate him. “The people that did it should be arrested!” Trump insisted.
Trump further alleged that the teleprompter used for his speech failed at critical moments and that the audio system was “completely off,” making it difficult for the audience to hear without interpreter earpieces.
U.S. Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz supported Trump’s call, describing the mishaps as “unacceptable” and reflective of “a broken institution” that posed serious risks.
UN officials pushed back. Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said the escalator malfunction may have been caused by someone in Trump’s delegation accidentally pressing the emergency stop. Another spokesperson, Farhan Haq, clarified that the teleprompter in question belonged to Trump’s team, not the UN.
The UN has not announced any inquiry into the matter.