Among the highlights of the recently held 16th summit of the Non Aligned Movement (NAM) in Tehran, attended by senior officials of 120 member states, in addition to 17 observer nations and world bodies, was the speech of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, which was hailed by not only the audience in conference hall and viewers throughout Iran, but also by the press and officials of the free world. Now we present you excerpts of the speech, which among other things considered nuclear weapons as sin, access to peaceful nuclear the right of all world nations, the need to resolve the chronic question of Palestine through referendum for one single state and government, illegality of sanctions by big powers, and the necessity of restructuring the Unite Nations Organization, especially the Security Council which has become an instrument of roguish powers to bully the world. Ayatollah Khamenei considered the NAM role in resolving problems facing the world as very important, saying that today over fifty years since its foundation, Non-Aligned values remain alive and steady, such as the struggle against neo colonialism, and the need for political, economic, scientific, trade and cultural independence, through solidarity and cooperation among member states. He added that realities of today’s world fall short of those values, but the collective will and comprehensive efforts to change the existing realities and achieve these values, though full of challenges, are promising and rewarding. In the recent past, we have been witness to the failure of the policies of the Cold War era and the unilateralism that followed it. Having learnt lessons from this historical experience, the world is in transition towards a new international order and the Non-Aligned Movement can and should play a new role. According to the Leader, this new order should be based on justice, equality, the participation of all nations and equal rights for all; And as members of this movement, our solidarity is an obvious necessity in the current era for establishing this new order. He said developments around the globe promises a multi-faceted system in which the current power blocs are replaced with groups of nations, cultures and civilizations based on different economic, social and political origins. Over the past three decades, he said: We have witnessed the emergence of new powers and the decline of the traditional powers, and this gradual transition provides the Non-Aligned countries with an opportunity to play a significant and worthy role on the world stage and prepare the ground for a just and truly participatory global management. He added: In spite of varying perspectives and orientations, we member states have managed to preserve our solidarity and bond over a long period of time within the framework of the shared values and this is not a small achievement; this bond can pave the ground for progress towards a just and humane order. Ayatollah Khamenei emphasized the necessity of restructuring the UN including the Security Council, which he said is outdated and has become a "flagrant form of dictatorship". He said the control room of the world should not be managed by the "dictatorial will of a few Western regimes", and called for establishment of a participatory system for managing international affairs, one that is "global and democratic." The Leader of the Islamic Revolution deplored that "the UN Security Council has an illogical, unjust and completely undemocratic structure and mechanism. This is a flagrant form of dictatorship, which is antiquated and obsolete and whose expiry date has passed," he told an audience which also included UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. Without mincing words, he added: "It is through abusing this improper mechanism that the US and its accomplices have managed to disguise their bullying as noble concepts and impose it on the world.They protect the interests of the West in the name of 'human rights'. They interfere militarily in other countries in the name of 'democracy." He pointed out that that torture and assassination have become permissible and are completely ignored if they are carried out by "the US, the Zionists and their puppets." They interfere militarily in other countries in the name of “democracy”. They target defenseless people in villages and cities with their bombs and weapons in the name of “combating terrorism”. From their perspective, humanity is divided into first, second- and third-class citizens. Human life is considered cheap in Asia, Africa and Latin America and expensive in America and Western Europe. The security of America and Europe is considered important, while the security of the rest of humanity is considered unimportant. It does not trouble their conscience that they have secret prisons in various places on different continents, in which defenseless prisoners who have no legal representation and have not been tried in a court of law are treated in the most hideous and detestable way. Good and evil are defined in a completely one-sided and selective way. They impose their interests on the nations of the world in the name of “international law”. They impose their domineering and illegal demands in the name of “international community”. Using their exclusive and organized media network, they disguise their lies as the truth, their falsehood as true, and their oppression as efforts to promote justice. In contrast, they brand as lies every true statement that exposes their deceit and label every legitimate demand as roguish. Ayatollah Khamenei said the current global conditions provide the Non-Aligned Movement with an opportunity that might never arise again. He said one of the painful issues of which over 60 years have passed is the usurpation of Palestine by the illegal Zionist migrants of Europe. On the chronic question of Palestine, he stated: "This great usurpation – which at the outset was accompanied with massacres of defenseless people in towns and villages and their expulsion from their homes and homeland to bordering countries – has continued for more than six decades with similar crimes and continues to this very day. This is one of the most important issues of the human community". He said political and military leaders of the usurper Zionist entity have committed every imaginable crime against humanity, from killing the people, destroying their homes and farms and arresting and torturing men and women and even children. The Israelis humiliate and insult Palestinians by attacking refugee camps and even neighboring countries where millions of refugees live. Such names as Sabra and Shatila, Qana and Deir Yasin have been etched in the history of our region with the blood of the oppressed Palestinian people. It is an irony, said the Leader of the Islamic Revolution: "The Zionist regime, which has carried out assassinations and caused conflicts and crimes for decades by waging disastrous wars, killing people, occupying Arab territories and organizing state terror in the region and in the world, labels the Palestinian people as “terrorists”, the people who have stood up to fight for their rights. The Zionist-controlled media networks of the West repeat this great lie in violation of ethical values and journalistic commitment, and the political leaders who claim to defend human rights have closed their eyes to all these crimes." Ayatollah Khamenei stressed that Palestine belongs to the Palestinians and its continued occupation is a great and intolerable injustice and a major threat to global peace and security. He pointed out that the so-called solutions imposed by the West for Palestine have been wrong and unsuccessful, and it will remain so in the future, because of lack of justice and impartiality on the part of the big powers. In this regard, he presented Iran's logical and rational solution, saying: "We have put forth a just and entirely democratic solution. All the Palestinians – both the current citizens of Palestine including those who have been forced to become refugees in other countries, irrespective of being Muslims, Christians and Jews, should take part in an internationally supervised referendum for choosing one single political system for the one single nation of Palestine, and all those who have suffered from years of exile should return to their country and take part in this referendum and then help draft a Constitution and hold elections. Then only will real peace prevail". In conclusion, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution said: "Now I would like to give a piece of advice to American politicians who blindly support Israel. So far, this regime has created countless problems for you. It has presented a hateful image of you to the regional peoples, and it has made you look like an accomplice in the crimes of the usurping Zionists. The material and moral costs borne by the American government and people on account of this are staggering, and if this continues, the costs might become even heavier in the future. Think about the Islamic Republic's proposal of a referendum and with a courageous decision, rescue yourselves from the current impossible situation. Undoubtedly, the people of the region and all free-thinkers across the world will welcome this measure."