TWO bellicose, bombastic speeches by US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the UN General Assembly last week have clearly flagged their countries as the biggest threats facing the beleaguered Travel & Tourism industry. The second quarter of the 21st century, which began this year, is now set to be even more turbulent than the first.
With geopolitics now widely recognised as the overarching challenge, and the Middle East conflict at the heart of it, the question facing Travel & Tourism is: What can, should and must be done about it?
The 81st session of the UN General Assembly, the annual summit of the world’s heads of state, was held between Sep. 22-28 under the theme, “Restoring trust, managing transformation: a United Nations that delivers for all”. It featured 197 well-crafted and carefully-worded speeches expressing the leaders’ hopes, aspirations, concerns and policy perspectives. Cumulatively, they were a state-of-the-world health-check I analysed them in detail.
While the vast majority of speakers discussed sustainability, peace-building, rule of law, multilateralism and dialogue, the Netanyahu and Trump speeches were messianic, supremacist, full of grotesque chest-thumping bravado. Both leaders declared themselves judge, jury and executioners, with a self-issued licence to kill, unfettered by any rule of law or accountability. Given the military and monetary power their countries and megacorporations wield, they effectively told the rest of the world to submit to their will — or else.
As the images below show, both Trump and Netanyahu have questionable track records. This analysis weighs their words in the broader context of their mental state and decision-making capabilities. Readers are welcome to cross-check it with more competent mental health professionals, or just any AI platform.
In words that appeared to have been written by the same speechwriter, both bragged about the power of their respective countries to do pretty much whatever they want. They spewed insults, lies and obfuscations, all the while painting themselves as the “good guys”. Trump bragged about his conquests of Venezuela and Greenland, Netanyahu bragged about expanding the Greater Israel project to cover Syria, Lebanon, Gaza and the West Bank, with Turkey and Qatar in the future cross-hairs.
Said Trump, “We inherited a dark Age of America from the previous administration, and we turned it into the golden age of America. The entire world is being lifted by the wealth, strength, spirit, and momentum of a newly energised and a very powerful United States of America. And just as we moved quickly to address problems we inherited at home, we have acted with decisiveness and speed to reshape the world stage and solve problems that have plagued us for far too long.”
Netanyahu said the US and Israel are in a battle against barbarians and acting together “not only to protect ourselves but to protect civilisation.” Interspersing his usage of “Israel” and “the Jewish people,” he bragged about how they have repeatedly won over formidable odds and will stay the course until they “win”. He said, “Tyrants the world over seek to threaten us. They seek to undermine our resolve with their campaign of lies. But ultimately as on the battlefield, the Jewish people will prevail.”
Iran is their next target, as follows:
TRUMP: “I have a big decision to make. Will a deal be made with Iran that lets them rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before? Maybe one of the greatest in the Middle East, or even the world. Or do I annihilate the Islamic Republic and do it quickly, never giving them a chance to kill and destroy people and countries again? Do I drive them into hell with no chance of survival and no hope of future greatness or generations? But I believe we’ll make a deal right after the election, because it doesn’t make sense for them not to.”
Netanyahu: “It’s only a matter of time that in Iran something incredible will happen. The power of the people will overcome the people in power. I want you to listen to my words carefully: One day, and it may not be far away, the Iranian people will be free. Their murderous regime will be toppled by its lies, by its corruption, by its cruelty. This evil regime will fall, and we will all celebrate that day.”
Here are some more sample quotes:
TRUMP: “One year ago, when I addressed the great leaders in this hall, the war in Gaza was still raging brutally. The hostages were still deep in Hamas tunnels and there was no end in sight. It was never going to be resolved. But here on the sidelines of the General Assembly, we took the first steps. That changed everything. A few weeks later, we ended the war in Gaza, saving untold thousands of lives. We also brought home all remaining hostages, both living and dead. Every single one of them.”
NETANYAHO: “Colonel Spencer has studied every urban war from antiquity to modern times, from ancient Greece to Mosul to Gaza. Here is what Colonel Spencer says: ‘Israel has done more to prevent civilian casualties in war than any other military in history.’ We’ve taken innumerable steps to protect the civilian population. Is this genocide? Of course not. It’s the opposite of genocide. So to all those spreading these lies about my country and about our brave soldiers, whether they sit in this hall or in the office of the antisemitic mayor of New York City, I say this: Shame on you. Shame on you for distorting the facts. Shame on you for inverting victim and aggressor. Shame on you for spitting in the face of truth.”
TRUMP: “I know all of you very well, but they know that given only a short time to make this world better, safer, and more prosperous for our children, for the people on earth, we have to take advantage of it. As president of the most extraordinary nation in history, I have no interest in leaving dangers to grow for another day. I do not believe in letting problems fester. They only become harder to solve. So while others have talked, I have acted, while others have spoken of peace, I have made peace, while others have ignored threats, I have confronted them while others have talked of courage, America has shown it, while others have promised strength.”
NETANYAHU: “I can assure you, ladies and gentlemen, we in Israel do not wait for others to wake up from their moral slumber. We forge ahead. We seize the future. We pioneer incredible developments in health, agriculture, artificial intelligence – ‘superior intelligence’. And we bring these amazing innovations to all of humanity. Israel has never been stronger. We are not afraid.”
TRUMP: “The United States is equally opposed to the out of control institution known as the International Criminal Court. We will never allow US service members or anyone else to be investigated or given show trials by an anti-American tribunal with no jurisdiction over us or an evil group of people. I call on all nations that are members of the ICC to officially resign from this rogue institution immediately.”
NETANYAHU: “The antisemites of the world want to terrify our people. I have news for them. The days when Jews were defenseless victims marched to the slaughter. Those days are over. Today, we have a state. Today, we have an army. Today, we have a people ready and willing to defend ourselves. So today, I have one message for Jews around the world. Raise your head high. Be proud. Be confident. Don’t be intimidated. Stand up. And for everyone else who wants to defend truth and justice, join us in standing up to the barbarians who threaten our common civilisation.”
The full texts of the speeches can be found here and here.
Implications for Travel & Tourism
The speeches read like the scripts of Marvel superhero movies, all rolled into one. The contempt and disdain towards the international community is just mind-blowing. The rest of the world may just as well as surrender their national sovereignty to the US and Israel.
Because their approach is geopolitically and diplomatically unsustainable, a lot more violence and conflict is a foregone conclusion. It is clear they plan to first wipe Palestine off the map. After Iran, Netanyahu indicated that Qatar and Turkey are next. That will soon spread to Asia, especially the Muslim-majority countries which have no diplomatic relations with Israel and are vigorous supporters of the Palestine cause.
The United States supplied major arms to 99 states in 2021-25.
As they have clearly laid out their game-plans, the Travel & Tourism industry needs to start preparing for its multidimensional and multidirectional ripple-effects, which are set to be even worse in length, breadth and depth than those already experienced since 2023.
== An attack on Iran will mean more disruptions to airline traffic through the critical Gulf hubs, affecting both people and cargo movements. The law of unintended consequences will kick in, for sure.
== Diplomats 77 countries walked out of the Netanyahu speech. Most were from Africa, Asia and the Global South. He called them “moral cowards.” That certainly did not go down well.
== Many countries host Israeli tourists, and are likely to see severe domestic opposition, including possible arrest warrants for Israeli military personnel indicted for possible war crimes.
== Many US Travel & Tourism corporations are well-connected to Israel, especially in real estate, hospitality, transport, technology, credit cards, finance, security, and more. As well as academics and consultants. What is their role in providing intelligence to the Israeli government and bolstering the US-Israeli agenda?
== Finally, how will Travel & Tourism flows be impacted in general, through more invasive visa application processes, security costs, racial profiling, and much more?
With no countervailing forces on the horizon, Travel & Tourism faces some dark days ahead. Resilience and recovery campaigns are simply not going to cut it.
CAPTIONS:
Top: US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Insert: US President Donald Trump addressing the 81st session of the UN General Assembly on Sep. 22, 2026. Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok
Front Page: US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hold a press conference after meeting at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, on Dec. 29, 2025. File photo: Reuters/Jonathan Ernst and published by CNA
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