A spokesman for the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights condemned President Trump Donald John TrumpObama calls on Senate not to fill Ginsburg's vacancy until after election Planned Parenthood: 'The fate of our rights' depends on Ginsburg replacement Progressive group to spend M in ad campaign on Supreme Court vacancy MORE for calling Haiti, El Salvador and African nations “shithole countries,” saying “there’s no other word one can use but racist” to describe the remarks.

Spokesman Rupert Colville said Trump’s comments were “shocking and shameful,” according to The Associated Press.

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“It legitimizes the targeting of people based on who they are,” Coalville said, adding that the comments “go against the universal values the world has been striving so hard to establish since World War II and the Holocaust.”

“This isn’t just a story about vulgar language, it’s about opening the door to humanity’s worst side,” he said.

Trump made the comments during an Oval Office meeting on immigration, The Washington Post reported Thursday.

“Why are we having all these people from shithole countries come here?” Trump said about African countries, Haiti and El Salvador, according to The Post.

The White House did not deny that Trump made the comments.

“Certain Washington politicians choose to fight for foreign countries, but President Trump will always fight for the American people,” White House spokesman Raj Shah said in a statement Thursday.

The High Commissioner for Human Rights is the principal human rights official of the United Nations. Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, who was formerly Jordan's permanent representative to the United Nations, is the current high commissioner.

CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story misidentified the United Nations office represented by Colville.