TEHRAN: Iran today closed a summit of non-aligned states after two days of sometimes conflicting speeches over Syria and stepped-up pressure over its nuclear program that overshadowed the proceedings.
Representatives from the 120 members of the Non-Aligned Movement adopted a document that condemned unilateral sanctions, backed the right of Iran and other states to peaceful nuclear energy, and supported the creation of a Palestinian state, Iranian media reported.
The document also reportedly advocated nuclear disarmament, human rights free from political agendas and opposition to racism and “Islamophobia”.
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad chaired the closing ceremony, reflecting his country’s presidency of the NAM for the next three years, after which it will pass to Venezuela.
With around 30 heads of state or government attending, and senior officials filling out the other two-thirds of the heavily secured hall, Iran portrayed the summit as a triumph over Western attempts to isolate it over its disputed nuclear activities.
Ahmadinejad said the summit was “unique in quality and in the number of participants.”
But the nuclear issue came back to take a bite out of that goal, with the UN atomic watchdog releasing a report half way through the summit accusing Iran of having “significantly hampered” inspectors’ efforts to investigate a suspect military site, Parchin.
The report also said Iran had in the past three months installed more than 1,000 uranium enrichment centrifuges in its fortified Fordo nuclear bunker that is one of the prime concerns of the United States and fellow permanent UN Security Council members. -AFP
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