NAM Summit Backs Iran's Right To Nuclear Power

The Non-Aligned Summit ended with a declaration backing Iran's right to nuclear power.

The 120-nation Non-Aligned Movement has wrapped up its summit in Tehran with a declaration supporting Iran's right to the peaceful use of nuclear power.

The statement comes a day after the UN's nuclear watchdog accused Iran of blocking a probe of a military site southeast of Tehran, Parchin, suspected of being used for nuclear-related explosive tests.

Earlier, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said emerging nations have a greater right than the West or United Nations to resolve Syria's escalating civil war.

Many NAM nations, especially the Sunni Muslim ones, however, are sympathetic or back the rebels.

On August 30, Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi told the summit that Assad's "oppressive" regime had lost its legitimacy and that the world needed to back the rebels.

Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has defended his decision to attend the NAM summit in Tehran, saying he used the occasion to press Iran on human rights and greater transparency regarding its nuclear program.

Based on AFP and Reuters reporting