WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump urged world leaders to hold China accountable for the spread of the coronavirus, in a video address to a scaled-down U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday as America’s death toll topped 200,000.

Beyond criticizing China, Trump took aim at the very foundation of the United Nations by urging other leaders to put their own countries first, a message that echoed his “America First” campaign mantra.

“Only when you take care of your own citizens, will you find a true basis for cooperation,” Trump said. “As president, I have rejected the failed approaches of the past — and I am proudly putting America first, just as you should be putting your countries first. That’s OK. That’s what you should be doing.”

But it was the coronavirus that was both the core and the backdrop of Trump’s address. Speeches by U.S. presidents are normally a highlight of the annual General Assembly, a premier event on the global diplomatic calendar. But this year’s gathering is being held remotely because of the pandemic. Trump, denied an auditorium packed with global leaders, gave a speech lasting just under eight minutes, the shortest General Assembly speech by a U.S. president in more than two decades.

Under fire for his own handling of the coronavirus, Trump cast blame on China, noting the virus began there and accusing the Chinese government of acting irresponsibly in failing to contain it.

“The United Nations must hold China accountable for their actions,” Trump said, without elaborating on what punishment he thought was warranted.

Trump also attacked China’s environmental record, even though his administration has rolled back or eliminated scores of existing or pending public health and environmental protections.

China’s U.N. ambassador rejected criticism of China on its handling of COVID-19 as “totally baseless.”

“At this moment, the world needs more solidarity and cooperation, and not a confrontation,” Ambassador Zhang Jun said before introducing President Xi Jinping’s prerecorded speech.

Trump’s address comes at a time when U.N. members are pushing back against Washington. On Monday, Trump declared that all U.N. sanctions against Iran have been reimposed, a move that most of the rest of the world rejects as illegal.

Trump’s statement came shortly after he signed an executive order spelling out how the U.S. will enforce the “snapback” of sanctions. “My actions today send a clear message to the Iranian regime and those in the international community who refuse to stand up to Iran,” he said.

The U.S. said it was reimposing sanctions on Iran for being in noncompliance with the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and global powers.