First lady Melania Trump presided over the United Nations Security Council meeting Monday, declaring that the United States “stands with all of the children throughout the world,” in a historic speech calling for “peace through education,” amid the U.S. military involvement in Iran.
The speech marked the first time a first lady from any country — and the first time a sitting U.S. first lady — presided over the Security Council as its members consider education, technology, peace and security.
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The United States assumed the United Nations Security Council presidency Monday, just days after the U.S. and Israel launched a massive joint military operation against Iran over the weekend known as “Operation Epic Fury.”
The attacks left major leaders dead, including Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The joint military operation is expected to carry on for days, as the U.S. military continues to target military and ballistic missile sites that pose an “imminent threat.”
President Donald Trump warned over the weekend against Iranian retaliation, saying that if Iran were to “hit very hard,” they would be met with “a force that has never been seen before.”
But the first lady’s appearance at the United Nations was scheduled before Operation Epic Fury began.
“The U.S. stands with all of the children throughout the world,” the first lady said Monday. “I hope soon — peace will be yours.”
The U.N. Security Council consists of 15 member states, with five permanent members: the United States, China, France, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, and 10 nonpermanent members elected for two-year terms, including Bahrain, Colombia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Denmark, Greece, Latvia, Liberia, Pakistan, Panama and Somalia.
“Collectively, your mission to maintain security while upholding the responsibility of preventing conflict during times of both war and peace is significant, must be applied evenly, and should never be carried out lightly,” she said. “Peace does not need to be fragile.”
The first lady’s speech focused on education, saying that it “shapes the core of their country’s belief system.”
“A nation that makes learning sacred protects its books, its language, its science, and its mathematics — it protects its future,” she said. “This leads to something powerful — to greater understanding, moral reasoning, and tolerance of others. Peace.”
The first lady stressed that children raised in cultures rooted in intelligence “develop confidence, innovate, build, compete, and maintain a deep value system.”
“Their knowledge fosters empathy for others, transcending geography, religion, race, gender, and even local norms,” she said. “They become caring people.”
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On the contrary, the first lady said that children raised in a culture “rooted in ignorance are surrounded by disorder, and sometimes even conflict.”
“These societies are filled with rigid thinkers who embrace prejudice and shun human dignity,” she said. “When a nation restricts thought, it restricts its own future.”
The first lady said education is a “fundamental human right,” but added that “so many children and young adults are banned from attending secondary schools and universities.”
“The cost is not abstract,” she said. “A society that excludes vast segments of its population can realize only a fraction of its potential. Societies rules by knowledge and wisdom are, therefore, more peaceful.”
The first lady declared that “knowledge is power,” and said, “We must capture this positive energy and ignite it across continents to transform our world — throughout our digitally connected human race.”
“Intellect blossoms humanity’s fundamental needs: shelter, food security, clean water and healthcare.”
“The global community must facilitate complete access to technology so that every individual can reach their full potential through education,” she said. “We must strive to achieve connectivity in the most remote locations and the furthest distances from our cities.”
The first lady said the objective “is entirely feasible and is already on the way.”
“Today, roughly 6 billion individuals, about 70% of people on planet Earth, have a mobile device and use the internet,” she said. “If our nations band together, we can close the technological divide, empowering all to reach their full potential.”
“From a solitary farmer on a remote Greek island to a quiet genius in Somalia or a dreamer in uptown Manhattan, anyone can read the vast treasury of human knowledge, created over centuries, which is now codified and accessible through artificial intelligence,” she continued.
The first lady went on to question whether a “single digital nation-state” could be inevitable.
“Perhaps this idea isn’t so farfetched, since digital currency and payment systems via blockchain, plus AI’s massive factual database is already revolutionizing media and financial markets,” she said. “We are in the age of imagination — a period when technology can be free and unrestricted by land borders.”
She added: “Now is the time for our generation to elevate our children above ideology through access to wisdom.”
The first lady said artificial intelligence is “democratizing knowledge” and creating a “new reality for our children by disrupting the traditional academic path to information.”
“Let’s connect everyone to knowledge through AI, including those in the most remote geographic regions of our world,” she said. “AI can provide us with an understanding of each other’s needs and the needs for your children.”
The first lady said artificial intelligence is “redefining who gets to participate in the global economy of ideas.”
“I believe our shared intellectual future will prove to be a more secure, harmonious, advanced civilization,” she said. “The path to peace depends on us taking responsibility to empower our children through education and technology.”
The first lady stressed that “conflict arises from ignorance, but knowledge creates understanding, replacing fear with peace and unity.”
“Security Council members, I encourage you to pledge to safeguard learning in our communities and promote access to heightened education for all,” she said. “I implore you to build a future generation of leaders who embrace peace through education.”
The speech comes as the first lady continues her push as a champion of online protection of children and youth through her “Be Best” initiative launched during the first Trump administration.
In 2025, the first lady garnered support on Capitol Hill for the passage of the Take it Down Act, which was signed into law by the president in May 2025. The law punishes internet abuse involving nonconsensual, explicit imagery.
The first lady also launched a nationwide Presidential Artificial Intelligence Challenge, which invited every student and educator across the nation to “unleash their imagination and showcase the spirit of American innovation” by visiting AI.gov to sign up.
