{"text":[[{"start":0,"text":"Senior US officials held talks with Iranian counterparts on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, hours after Donald Trump threatened to “annihilate” the Islamic republic in a combative speech to world leaders."}],[{"start":21.795,"text":"The US president said after his address that envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner had “a very good meeting” with members of the Iranian delegation. Iranian state television reported that foreign minister Abbas Araghchi attended the first direct talks between the US and Iran since late June."}],[{"start":38.76,"text":"Trump, who said the options for Iran were “potential greatness or obliteration”, added that further talks were set to take place in “the near future”."}],[{"start":47.28,"text":"Addressing the UN General Assembly in New York on Tuesday, the president said he faced a “big decision” over the Iran conflict, which has ignited a global energy crisis and triggered broader violence across the Middle East."}],[{"start":60.2,"text":"Trump said he could “annihilate the Islamic republic and do it quickly” if Tehran did not agree to US terms for a deal that “lets them rebuild”."}],[{"start":68.12,"text":"Oil prices were flat on Wednesday during Asian trading, with Brent crude, the international benchmark, trading around $99.24 a barrel. US oil prices edged down 0.3 per cent to $90.22 a barrel."}],[{"start":83.68,"text":"Trump delivered his remarks on Tuesday as Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian was on his way to New York to attend the UN General Assembly and as the US threatens to impose sanctions on air service providers in countries where Iranian airlines fly."}],[{"start":97.72,"text":"The move would further cut off Iran from the outside world, with Oman and Iraq saying they were preparing to stop receiving Iranian airlines, according to a spokesperson for Iran’s Civil Aviation Organization."}],[{"start":110.176,"text":"The US president predicted he would succeed in striking a peace agreement after November’s midterm elections, which will determine whether Trump’s Republican Party can keep control of Congress."}],[{"start":119.44,"text":"“I believe we will make a deal right after the election,” he said."}],[{"start":123.48,"text":"The president complained Iran was “waiting to see how I do in the midterm election” but insisted the upcoming vote was not influencing his approach to the war."}],[{"start":131.72,"text":"The Iran war has not just isolated Washington internationally but also driven Trump’s domestic approval ratings to new lows in the run-up to the election."}],[{"start":140.78,"text":"Trump attacked those citing the warnings of defence analysts and US officials that American munitions stockpiles have run critically low, calling the people repeating such information “cowards and traitors”."}],[{"start":153.72,"text":"It’s “not true”, he said. “We have more munitions than we could ever possibly even think of using.”"}],[{"start":158.28,"text":"In a self-aggrandising address, Trump spoke for 33 minutes, touting his achievements as a historic peacemaker and courageous leader."}],[{"start":166.68,"text":"“While others have talked, I have acted. While others have spoken of peace, I have made it,” he told the international audience, repeating his longstanding claim to have ended “eight wars” including the ongoing conflict in Gaza."}],[{"start":179.56,"text":"Trump also hailed the US’s overthrow of Venezuela’s president and threatened possible military action against Mexico, Cuba and other western countries. He said America would not “permit threats to America to gain a foothold” in the hemisphere."}],[{"start":193,"text":"“If necessary, we will use our unmatched military might to secure the vital national interests of the United States,” he added."}],[{"start":200.8,"text":"Cuba, he predicted, “will fall”, as the delegates from that nation stood and left the room."}],[{"start":206.92,"text":"Trump’s speech, which followed opening addresses by UN leaders and the president of Brazil, underscored his administration’s conflicting stance towards the body."}],[{"start":215.02,"text":"He expressed “gratitude” for the UN Security Council’s support of a resolution condemning Iran before deriding the UN Human Rights Council as “craven hypocrites”."}],[{"start":224.56,"text":"Trump also described the International Criminal Court as “out of control” and accused the International Maritime Organization of seeking to be a “global government” in its effort to impose a carbon tax to combat climate change."}],[{"start":236.88,"text":"Nevertheless, Trump’s speech on Tuesday was a marked departure from the rambling, nearly hour-long remarks he delivered from the same podium a year ago when he told Europe it was “going to hell” and suggested that he deserved the Nobel Peace Prize."}],[{"start":250.32,"text":"While he used bombastic rhetoric to talk up American successes again this year — “our economy is the envy of the world” — his delivery was more subdued."}],[{"start":256.88,"text":"Trump has been frustrated in recent months by US inflation and mounting petrol prices that have aggravated voters. The price of diesel hit its highest recorded average at $6.50 a gallon, according to the American Automobile Association."}],[{"start":273.32,"text":"Shortly before he took the stage, UN secretary-general António Guterres appeared to take direct aim at Trump’s vision for a new world order."}],[{"start":282.24,"text":"“No power can solve today’s challenges alone,” Guterres said, reminding superpowers that “their power isn’t so super” and that “military power alone cannot secure peace”."}],[{"start":293.48,"text":"Recent events “have made that unmistakably clear”, he added, saying “so-called ceasefires have amounted to little more than lesser fires”."}],[{"start":302.2,"text":"Additional reporting by Andrew England and Bita Ghaffari"}],[{"start":312.28,"text":""}]],"url":"https://audio.ftcn.net.cn/album/a_1790130035_3811.mp3"}