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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World

Time to move the UN away from Donald Trump’s grasp

Flags fly in the wind during the general debate of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly at the UN headquarters in New York on 22 September 2026.
The exterior of the UN headquarters in New York on 22 September 2026. Photograph: Sarah Yenesel/EPA

Nesrine Malik rightly questions the effectiveness of the current United Nations (War, power games and impunity. I watched the farce that is the UN general assembly: what a tragedy, what a mess, 1 October). Why has there been so little outcry about Donald Trump’s blocking of visas for Palestinians and Sudanese (or any other accredited members) to attend the UN in New York? Despite the cost and upheaval, it is time to call Trump’s bluff and relocate the UN, preferably to Switzerland.
Joe Cocker
Leominster, Herefordshire

• Imagine my excitement to discover in your interview with Erasure (2 October) that Andy Bell’s partner is Stephen Moss! But which of the fabled Guardian doppelganger journalists could it be? Or, heaven forfend, might there be a third Stephen Moss?
Pete Rosser
Wakefield, West Yorkshire

• If anxious to see off overstaying guests (Letters, 2 October), you might buy a set of mugs from the Cromwell Museum in Huntingdon, with the rather apt quotation: “You have been sat too long here for any good you have been doing. Depart, I say ... In the name of God, go!”
David Gordon
Ely, Cambridgeshire

• In East Marton, North Yorkshire, a cafe has a sign that says: “All of our customers give us pleasure – some by arriving, others by departing.”
Bruce Moore
Harrogate, North Yorkshire

• If “pre-book in advance” (Letters, 1 October) is bleeding obvious, how about “hair cut while you wait”?
Prof Gareth Williams
Rockhampton, Gloucestershire

• “Pre-ordered” is tautological, but “pre-loved” is just ridiculous. What’s wrong with “secondhand”?
Hannah Hyam
Batheaston, Somerset

• Have an opinion on anything you’ve read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.

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