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| Non-Aligned Movement summit: 'You'd think Iran was hosting the Olympics' | Non-Aligned Movement summit: 'You'd think Iran was hosting the Olympics' |
| (4 months later) | |
| To watch Iranian state television, you'd think the country was hosting the Olympics. Rolling television coverage included reporters at the airport covering the landing of diplomats as if they were top athletes, and ongoing interviews with delegates being asked to comment on the hospitality of Iranians and their impressions of Tehran. | To watch Iranian state television, you'd think the country was hosting the Olympics. Rolling television coverage included reporters at the airport covering the landing of diplomats as if they were top athletes, and ongoing interviews with delegates being asked to comment on the hospitality of Iranians and their impressions of Tehran. |
| By devoting so much airtime to the summit of the Non-Aligned Movement, Iran's biggest international conference in three decades, authorities had one aim: to seize upon the rare presence of several heads of state and government to claim a diplomatic triumph in defiance of western-led efforts to isolate Tehran over its controversial nuclear dossier. | By devoting so much airtime to the summit of the Non-Aligned Movement, Iran's biggest international conference in three decades, authorities had one aim: to seize upon the rare presence of several heads of state and government to claim a diplomatic triumph in defiance of western-led efforts to isolate Tehran over its controversial nuclear dossier. |
| But there were some things Iranian media didn't show. When it came to the remarks made by the Egyptian president, Mohammed Morsi, denouncing the Syrian regime, and those of the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, obliquely criticising his hosts' policies, Iranian news agencies either censored their remarks or simply altered the translations. | But there were some things Iranian media didn't show. When it came to the remarks made by the Egyptian president, Mohammed Morsi, denouncing the Syrian regime, and those of the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, obliquely criticising his hosts' policies, Iranian news agencies either censored their remarks or simply altered the translations. |
| For Iran's leaders, hosting the summit represented an opportunity for an image makeover. In the face of the latest embargo against the import of the Iranian oil, it was also an effort to find new customers. They were able to depict an Iran that was a key-player in international politics but the unfortunate victim of a western-led campaign against its peaceful nuclear programme. | For Iran's leaders, hosting the summit represented an opportunity for an image makeover. In the face of the latest embargo against the import of the Iranian oil, it was also an effort to find new customers. They were able to depict an Iran that was a key-player in international politics but the unfortunate victim of a western-led campaign against its peaceful nuclear programme. |
| This is why when Ayatollah Ali Khamenei took the stage on Thursday morning for the official ceremony of the summit in north Tehran, addressing leaders of the movement's 120 nations, families of the Iranian nuclear scientists killed in a series of assassinations in recent years were seated in the front row, holding pictures of the victims. Outside the venue, the cars wrecked in the killings were displayed alongside pictures of family members. | This is why when Ayatollah Ali Khamenei took the stage on Thursday morning for the official ceremony of the summit in north Tehran, addressing leaders of the movement's 120 nations, families of the Iranian nuclear scientists killed in a series of assassinations in recent years were seated in the front row, holding pictures of the victims. Outside the venue, the cars wrecked in the killings were displayed alongside pictures of family members. |
| "Our motto is nuclear energy for all and nuclear weapons for none," said the Ayatollah, adamant that his country was not seeking to make nuclear bombs, which it considered a "sin". | "Our motto is nuclear energy for all and nuclear weapons for none," said the Ayatollah, adamant that his country was not seeking to make nuclear bombs, which it considered a "sin". |
| "It is most unfortunate to see that countries possessing the largest nuclear arsenals have no serious and genuine intention of removing these deadly weapons from their military doctrines," he added, according to quotes carried by his official website. | "It is most unfortunate to see that countries possessing the largest nuclear arsenals have no serious and genuine intention of removing these deadly weapons from their military doctrines," he added, according to quotes carried by his official website. |
| As Khamenei was speaking, the International Atomic Energy Agency was preparing to unveil its latest report on Iran's nuclear programme, which the west suspects might have military dimensions. The report is expected to reveal that Tehran has increased its potential capacity to refine uranium by installing more than 300 centrifuges at an underground uranium enrichment facility, despite UN calls for more clarity over its activities. | As Khamenei was speaking, the International Atomic Energy Agency was preparing to unveil its latest report on Iran's nuclear programme, which the west suspects might have military dimensions. The report is expected to reveal that Tehran has increased its potential capacity to refine uranium by installing more than 300 centrifuges at an underground uranium enrichment facility, despite UN calls for more clarity over its activities. |
| The Ayatollah, who is known not to have left Iran for more than 20 years, was conscious of his audience. As well as Morsi, the first Egyptian president to go to Tehran since the 1979 Islamic revolution, there was Manmohan Singh, the prime minister of India, which does not support the western economic sanctions on Tehran. There was also Afghanistan's president Hamid Karzai, Qatar's Emir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani and top-level officials from all the Persian Gulf countries. | The Ayatollah, who is known not to have left Iran for more than 20 years, was conscious of his audience. As well as Morsi, the first Egyptian president to go to Tehran since the 1979 Islamic revolution, there was Manmohan Singh, the prime minister of India, which does not support the western economic sanctions on Tehran. There was also Afghanistan's president Hamid Karzai, Qatar's Emir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani and top-level officials from all the Persian Gulf countries. |
| In his speech, Khamenei also attacked the UN security council as an "unjust" and "defunct relic" used by the US "to impose its bullying manner on the world". Criticism of the UN structure is a common themewithin the 51-year-old movement, a group of countries created during the cold war that was careful not to directly align with either power bloc. | In his speech, Khamenei also attacked the UN security council as an "unjust" and "defunct relic" used by the US "to impose its bullying manner on the world". Criticism of the UN structure is a common themewithin the 51-year-old movement, a group of countries created during the cold war that was careful not to directly align with either power bloc. |
| The Ayatollah tried to avoid controversy by not referring directly to the conflict in Syria, although he denounced the Americans for "military intervention" in other countries. | The Ayatollah tried to avoid controversy by not referring directly to the conflict in Syria, although he denounced the Americans for "military intervention" in other countries. |
| To Iranian dismay, however, Morsi failed to follow suit. The Egyptian leader described the Syrian government as "an oppressive regime that has lost its legitimacy is an ethical duty" and voiced support for "the struggle of those seeking freedom and justice in Syria". His remarks prompted a walkout by the Syrian delegation. | To Iranian dismay, however, Morsi failed to follow suit. The Egyptian leader described the Syrian government as "an oppressive regime that has lost its legitimacy is an ethical duty" and voiced support for "the struggle of those seeking freedom and justice in Syria". His remarks prompted a walkout by the Syrian delegation. |
| And the UN leader made things even more uncomfortable for his hosts by using his speech to criticise those who deny the Holocaust or threaten Israel – an implicit reference to the president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. | And the UN leader made things even more uncomfortable for his hosts by using his speech to criticise those who deny the Holocaust or threaten Israel – an implicit reference to the president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. |
| "I strongly reject threats by any member state to destroy another or outrageous attempts to deny historical facts such as the Holocaust," Ban said, albeit without mentioning Iran. "Claiming that Israel does not have the right to exist or describing it in racist terms is not only wrong but undermines the very principle we all have pledged to uphold." | "I strongly reject threats by any member state to destroy another or outrageous attempts to deny historical facts such as the Holocaust," Ban said, albeit without mentioning Iran. "Claiming that Israel does not have the right to exist or describing it in racist terms is not only wrong but undermines the very principle we all have pledged to uphold." |
| Ban is said to have raised concerns about the nuclear programme in his meeting with Khamenei on Wednesday. His full remarks were censored, and the image from the meeting that dominated Iranian media shows a humble secretary general sitting face-to-face with a smiling and authoritative Ayatollah unleashing a tirade of reproach. | Ban is said to have raised concerns about the nuclear programme in his meeting with Khamenei on Wednesday. His full remarks were censored, and the image from the meeting that dominated Iranian media shows a humble secretary general sitting face-to-face with a smiling and authoritative Ayatollah unleashing a tirade of reproach. |
| For the Iranians, the image makeover was complete. | For the Iranians, the image makeover was complete. |
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