Melania Trump on Monday became the first wife of a sitting world leader to chair the UN security council, calling on member states to protect children’s access to education days after Iranian state media reported that an airstrike killed at least 165 people at a girls’ school in southern Iran.
The meeting, titled Children, Technology and Education in Conflict, had been scheduled before the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran on Saturday.
The first lady took a seat at the council’s horseshoe-shaped table in New York, was greeted by Secretary-General António Guterres, shook hands with each of the 15 member state representatives and posed for a group photo before opening the session.
“America stands with all the children of the world,” Trump said in his opening remarks. “I hope that peace will be yours soon.”
In her speech, the first lady maintained that education is essential to prevent conflicts.
“A nation that makes learning sacred protects its books, its language, its science and its mathematics,” he told council members. “Protect your future.” He also advocated for artificial intelligence to be seen as the new great equalizer, urging the council to “connect everyone to knowledge through AI, including those in the most remote geographic regions of our world.”
He did not refer to the war or the reported school strike. The Israeli military said it was not aware of any attacks in the area and the US military said it was investigating the reports.
Amir Saeid Iravani, Iran’s ambassador to the UN, had previously called it “deeply shameful and hypocritical” for Washington to convene a meeting on the protection of children in conflict and at the same time launch airstrikes on Iranian cities.
The United States holds the rotating monthly presidency of the council during March, and the White House explained the choice of Melania Trump by saying that child welfare is known to be its top issue. The session was the second in three days: On Saturday, an emergency meeting called in response to the outbreak of war became contentious after Guterres condemned attacks by the United States and Israel and retaliatory strikes by Iran as violations of international law.
Melania Trump’s appearance at the UN also came against a backdrop of significant tension between Washington and the global humanitarian advocacy organization. Donald Trump has withdrawn the United States from the World Health Organization, UNESCO and many other UN bodies, and has allowed billions in mandatory dues to go unpaid.
Guterres warned in January that the UN was facing an “imminent financial collapse.” Meanwhile, weeks earlier, Donald Trump had convened the newly created Peace Board with dozens of countries for a United Nations-style meeting in Washington.
When asked if the first lady’s presence indicated an improvement in relations between the United States and the United Nations, a UN spokesman told the Associated Press that it demonstrated “the importance that the United States feels toward the Security Council and the issue.”
Melania Trump has advocated for child welfare diplomacy, writing to Vladimir Putin, Russia’s president, last summer before her summit with her husband. He later said the effort had helped Ukrainian children, relocated to Russia after the 2022 invasion, be reunited with their families.
“Conflict arises from ignorance, but knowledge creates understanding, replacing fear with peace and unity,” Melania Trump concluded in her speech. He then encouraged security council member states to “pledge to safeguard learning in our communities and promote access to better education for all.”
He added: “I implore you to build a future generation of leaders who embrace peace through education.”
