President Donald Trump’s recent visit to the United Nations General Assembly in New York was marred by a string of technical mishaps that he has labeled as “triple sabotage.” The incidents, which unfolded on September 23, 2025, have since spiraled into a high-profile diplomatic dispute, with Trump demanding an immediate and comprehensive investigation by the United Nations and the involvement of U.S. authorities, including the Secret Service.
The drama began just moments before Trump was scheduled to deliver his address to the General Assembly. As he and First Lady Melania Trump stepped onto an escalator leading up to the main speaking floor, the moving staircase abruptly ground to a halt. The sudden stop forced the couple to freeze in their tracks, narrowly avoiding what Trump later described as a potential disaster. “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 on his social media platform, as reported by ABC News and The Times.
Initially, Trump appeared to brush off the incident, joking about the escalator and a “bad” teleprompter during his speech. However, his tone shifted dramatically the following day. In a sharply worded post, he declared, “A REAL DISGRACE took place at the United Nations yesterday — Not one, not two, but three very sinister events!” He went on to accuse unnamed individuals of deliberate sabotage, referencing an article in The Times that claimed UN staff had previously joked about shutting off escalators to humiliate the U.S. president. “The people that did it should be arrested!” Trump insisted, adding that he had sent a formal letter to UN Secretary-General António Guterres demanding an immediate investigation.
The escalator mishap was only the first of the three incidents Trump highlighted. Upon reaching the podium, he encountered a second problem: his teleprompter failed to function for the first 15 minutes of his speech. Forced to abandon the prepared script, Trump read from paper until the teleprompter was restored. He later quipped, “The teleprompter was broken and the escalator came to a sudden halt as we were riding up to the podium, but both of those events probably made the speech more interesting than it would have been otherwise. It is always an honor to speak at the United Nations, even if, their equipment is somewhat faulty.”
But the troubles did not end there. According to Trump, the audio system in the General Assembly Hall was also compromised. He claimed that the sound was “completely off” in the auditorium, preventing world leaders from hearing his address unless they used interpreters’ earpieces. “The first person I saw at the conclusion of the Speech was Melania, who was sitting right up front. I said, ‘How did I do?’ And she said, ‘I couldn’t hear a word you said.’ This wasn’t a coincidence, this was triple sabotage at the UN. They ought to be ashamed of themselves,” Trump wrote, as reported by BBC and Associated Press.
The White House quickly rallied behind Trump’s claims. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt took to social media and Fox News to demand accountability, stating, “If someone at the UN intentionally stopped the escalator as the President and First Lady were stepping on, they need to be fired and investigated immediately.” She confirmed that the U.S. Secret Service was looking into the matter, and urged that all security tapes, especially those capturing the emergency stop button, be preserved for review.
U.S. Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz also weighed in, echoing Trump’s demand for an official probe. “The United States will not tolerate threats to our security or dignity at international forums. We expect swift cooperation and decisive action,” Waltz posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. He described the incidents as “unacceptable” and “symptomatic of a broken institution that pose serious safety and security risks.”
For its part, the United Nations has offered a more mundane explanation for the escalator stoppage. According to UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric, the incident was likely caused by a videographer in Trump’s own delegation. “The safety mechanism is designed to prevent people or objects accidentally being caught and stuck in or pulled into the gearing. The videographer may have inadvertently triggered the safety function described above,” Dujarric explained, as cited by BBC and ABC News. A subsequent investigation, including a readout from the escalator’s central processing unit, confirmed that the built-in safety mechanism on the comb step was activated at the top of the escalator. The technician on site reset the escalator once the delegation had reached the second floor.
As for the teleprompter, the UN clarified that the device belonged to Trump’s team and was operated by the White House. “We have no comment since the teleprompter for the U.S. president is operated by the White House,” a UN spokesperson told reporters. Further, a UN official informed the BBC that the White House was responsible for bringing their own equipment and integrating it with the UN’s system—a process that occasionally results in technical hiccups.
The audio issue, which Trump described as a deliberate attempt to silence him, was also addressed by UN officials. According to the organization, the sound system in the General Assembly Hall is specifically configured to provide translations in six languages via earpieces. “The sound system was designed to allow people at their seats to hear speeches being translated into six different languages through earpieces,” a UN official told the BBC. This setup, they argued, meant that those not using the earpieces might not have heard the speech as clearly, but it was not evidence of sabotage.
Despite these explanations, skepticism and suspicion remain. Trump has doubled down on his accusations, insisting that all security footage be preserved and that those responsible be held to account. “All security tapes at the escalator should be saved, especially the emergency stop button. The Secret Service is involved,” he reiterated. The U.N., meanwhile, has signaled its willingness to cooperate fully. “The Secretary-General informed the US Permanent Mission that he had already ordered a thorough investigation, and he conveyed that the UN is ready to cooperate in full transparency with relevant US authorities on this matter to determine what caused the incidents referred to by the United States,” Dujarric said in a statement.
As the investigation unfolds, the episode has become a flashpoint in the often-fraught relationship between Trump and the United Nations. Whether the incidents were truly the result of “triple sabotage” or simply an unfortunate confluence of technical glitches remains to be seen. For now, both sides appear determined to get to the bottom of what really happened—each with their own narrative in hand.
