Iran calls nuclear weapons 'disgusting'
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Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Monday called nuclear weapons "disgusting" and lambasted the United States as hypocritical by failing to live up to its commitment to nuclear disarmament.
"The possession of nuclear bombs is not a source of pride, it is rather disgusting and shameful," he said at the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference, where some 183 countries gathered to take stock of the 40-year-old atomic arms control Treaty.
As the only head of state present at the summit, Ahmadinejad was second to speak after the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM). For the most part, his speech made just a few references to Israel, which he called the "Zionist regime."
However, he condemned the U.S. on a number of issues, including its role as the leader of a global arms race. Little has been done to encourage he U.S to dismantle its stockpile of roughly 10,000 atomic warheads, "nor is there any plan," he said.
He also assailed America's Nuclear Posture Review, which reserves the right to use nuclear weapons against countries like Iran and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), labeled as "outliers."
Low-level delegates from the U.S., France and Britain walked out of the GA hall as Ahmadinejad assailed against nuclear-weapons states for promoting "double standards."
"The Zionist regime, which has stockpiled hundreds of nuclear warheads, has waged many wars in the region and continues to threaten the people and nations of the region with terror and invasion, enjoys the unconditional support of the United States government and its allies and receives, as well, the necessary assistance to develop its nuclear weapon program," he said.
Meanwhile, the same nations accuse Iran of diverting nuclear technology to military applications "without providing a single credible proof to substantiate their allegation," he added.
Ahmadinejad called the NPT a platform for nuclear-weapons states to push their agenda on the international community, even while violating the spirit of the Treaty themselves.
While no single report has been issued by the UN watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), on U.S. nuclear weapons facilities, none of the non-nuclear weapon states have ever been able to exercise their inalienable and legal right to develop nuclear energy for peaceful purposes under Article XI of the Treaty, he said.
Equating nuclear arms with nuclear energy is "one of the gravest injustices" committed by the nuclear-weapons states," he added.
He said the imbalance of the NPT regime had put undue pressure on non-nuclear weapons states under the pretext of proliferation risks while doing little in the way of disarmament among the weapons-states.
"The government of the United States, which is the main suspect in the production, stockpiling and use and threat of the use of nuclear weapons insists to assume the leadership role in reviewing the NPT," he said. "The United States has never respected any of its commitments."
The U.S. has used terrorism as an excuse for maintaining and improving its nuclear arsenal, said Ahmadinejad, who then accused Israel and the U.S. of supporting terrorists networks. "Credible evidence" for the assertion will be made available at the next conference on the global fight against terrorism in Tehran, he said.
Ahmadinejad made a number of proposals to strengthen the NPT regime, including the suspension of membership in the IAEA Board of Governors for those nations that use or threat the use of nuclear weapons.
"In particular, how could the government of the United States be a member of the Board of Governors while it has not only used nuclear bombs against Japan but also used depleted uranium weaponries in Iraq war?" he said.
Ahmadinejad also suggested that the NPT should evolve into the Nuclear Disarmament and Non-Proliferation Treaty, which would impose binding measures on nuclear disarmament.
