UN rushes to address Trump's demands of investigation into "triple sabotage"

New York, New York - The UN told President Donald Trump it had launched a "thorough investigation" into what the Republican called a "triple sabotage" during his visit to the body's New York City headquarters.

The UN said it had ordered a "thorough investigation" into the technical problems that plagued President Donald Trump's appearance at the General Assembly.  © REUTERS

The US sent a letter to the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday demanding answers about an escalator that failed, stranding Trump and first lady Melania, as well as a malfunctioning teleprompter and a faulty public address system.

"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," Guterres's spokesperson, Stephane Dujarric, said late Wednesday.

In a long, angry social media post, Trump described the string of mishaps as "very sinister," called for people to be arrested and said the US Secret Service was also conducting a probe.

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"This wasn't a coincidence, this was triple sabotage at the UN. They ought to be ashamed of themselves," Trump said on his Truth Social.

"I demand an immediate investigation," he raged.

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UN explains technical glitches

Trump delivered an angry, rambling speech accusing the UN of undermining Western countries by facilitating migration.  © REUTERS

He was dogged by technical gremlins before and during his keynote speech to the organization and world leaders gathered at the UN General Assembly hall in New York.

Footage showed the 79-year-old president and Melania Trump getting on the escalator at UN headquarters on Tuesday before it stopped with a lurch, forcing them to walk up.

Then later, as he began his speech, he noted his teleprompter was not working.

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He spent much of the rest of the rambling speech bashing the world body, accusing it of funding illegal migration that was turning the US and European countries into "hell."

The UN previously insisted that the teleprompter was operated by the White House.

As for the escalator, Dujarric, the secretary-general's spokesman, issued a note to reporters saying that a videographer with the US delegation accidentally tripped a switch that caused the moving staircase to stop.

Trump also complained the public address system had been rigged so that his hour-long speech could not be heard.

"The sound system was designed to allow people at their seats to hear speeches being translated into six different languages through earpieces," said a UN official speaking on condition of anonymity.

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