The 16th Non Aligned Movement, NAM Summit got underway in Teheran. Leaders from over 60 countries are attending the two day summit. Iran takes over the rotating Chairmanship of the 120 member bloc of nations from the outgoing chair Egypt.
Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi, UN Secretary general Ban Ki Moon, Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari, Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and the Cuban President Raul Castro are among others attending the meet.
In his inaugural address, the Supreme leader of Iran, Sayyid Ali Khamenei called upon the 120 member bloc of nations to work for a just and equitable new world order. Mr Khamenei advocated that there should be nuclear energy for all countries but nuclear power for none.
He also stressed for the use of nuclear energy for all in a nuclear weapons free world. The Iranian leader reiterated that his country will continue to use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.
He took the western nations to task for what he called their bullying approach and hegemonistic designs. Mr Khamnei said the sanctions will not paralyze Iran but make it steadier. The Iranian leader said UN Security council must be reformed as it has outlived its utility.
The outgoing Chair of the NAM, the Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi recalled the legacy of the movement and underlined the need to respect the legitimate interests and the rights of the member nations.
He said mutual respect and co-operation can bring the movement on a higher pedestal. Mr Morsey said the NAM movement is committed to support the cause of Palestinians and their demand for a separate state.
Prime Minister Dr Manmohan SIngh will be addressing the NAM leaders later this evening. This will be his third address in the NAM summit after Havana in 2006 and Sharm-Al-Sheikh in 2009.
The theme of the summit is 'Lasting peace through joint global governance'.
Issues high on the agenda are developments in Syria, Palestine, UN reforms, human rights, combating terrorism, sustainable development, food and energy security and so on. The draft document of the summit adopted by the Foreign Ministers will be put up for consideration and approval of the heads of states.
The Non Aligned Movement came into existence in 1961 under the guidance of the first Prime Minister of India , Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, the then Yugoslav President Joseph Tito , Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Naser and Indonesian President Sukarno.
The movement was borne out of the desire of its founding fathers to have an independent bloc of nations in the cold war era to protect their interests in the fight against colonialism and the hegemony of a handful of developed nations.
As the movement completes 51 years of its existence, the member countries are now trying to find their rightful place in a uni-polar world.
