President Ahmadinejad heads to New York for NPT meeting

Tehran, May 2, IRNA – President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad left here for New York Sunday morning where he is to attend the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) review conference at the UN headquarters.

The president is accompanied by Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki, Senior Advisor to the President Mojtaba Samare Hashemi, Head of the Atomic Energy Organization Ali-Akbar Salehi, Head of the Presidential Office Esfandiar Rahim Mashaee and Head of the Islamic Republic News Agency Ali-Akbar Javanfekr.

The president and his entourage were seen off at the airport by First Vice-President Mohammad-Reza Rahimi.

President Ahmadinejad is to address the NPT review conference Monday at the UN headquarters on its opening day after the inaugural speech of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon.

The President is to present his proposals for NPT review.

Although the NPT review conference is to be held at the ministerial level, President Ahmadinejad decided to take part in the gathering due to its importance and in order to discuss Iran’s proposals for the treaty’s review in person.

His decision to attend the NPT meeting was highly welcomed by foreign media and international political analysts as they believed President Ahmadinejad’s presence in New York would be highly influential.

Certain powers that were to downgrade the NPT review conference at the level of a symbolic gathering became strongly concerned because of President Ahmadinejad’s presence in and his decision to address the gathering.

The significance of the president's visit to New York is that the visit would take place despite all efforts of the US government to deprive some of the Iranian delegates of receiving US visas.

In accordance with its obligations under the United Nations Headquarters Agreement, the United States, as host country to the United Nations is committed to provide the UN visitors with security and legal services including issuing visas./end