President Ebrahim Raisi “stole the limelight” at the UN General Assembly, with his speech on the “global transition from unilateralism to multilateralism” and Iran’s rising role internationally effectively serving as an “obituary of US hegemony,” one of Iran’s top international broadcasters has reported.
“President Raisi said the project of global Americanization has failed, referring to the staggering collapse of the policy of unilateralism with Washington in the role of a hegemony,” the outlet wrote.
During the speech, Raisi emphasized that “the equation of Western domination does not work for the world anymore,” and that “the old liberal order that used to serve the interests of imperialists and capitalists has been brushed aside.” The planet, he said, is “reaching a critical junction point as an emerging order of non-Western states look to pursue closer economic and political ties with one another.”
The comments were made amid the flurry of diplomatic activity by Iran over the past two years, including work on the finalization and signature of strategic cooperation treaties with Russia and China, a surprise move to normalize ties with Saudi Arabia, and the decision to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS.
“As non-Western powers have emerged, there is a collective hope for a novel and equitable world order. Iran advocates maximum economic and political convergence and is interested in interacting with the global community under the principle of justice," Raisi said.
The Iranian president also touted the Islamic Republic’s unique position in world affairs, saying the Revolution of 1979 endowed the country with the “biggest role in unmasking the imperialists” worldwide.
Raisi reserved a dose of venom for the United States and its allies, blasting the West for supporting the MKO terrorists seeking to overthrow the Iranian government while claiming to fight terror, slamming some European countries’ tolerance for Quran burnings, and criticizing Western countries for “using terrorism as a foreign policy instrument.” He went on to attack Washington for pulling out of the Iran nuclear deal, and fanning the flames of chaos in Ukraine, emphasizing that while Iran doesn’t see the conflict to be “in the interest of any European party,” the US seems interested in perpetuating the crisis indefinitely to weaken Europe, judging by its rejection of peace talks.
This year’s UN General Assembly has been marked by a decision by many leaders to sit it out, with Russia’s Vladimir Putin, China’s Xi Jinping, India’s Narendra Modi, the UAE’s Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and even France’s Emmanuel Macron and Britain’s Rishi Sunak deciding not to attend amid efforts by Washington and Kiev to focus the gathering on Ukraine.
Observers took note of the fact that the General Assembly Hall appeared half-empty during President Zelensky’s speech Tuesday, with the Ukrainian president even managing to burn bridges with some of his own allies by accusing “some EU countries” of “feigning solidarity” with Kiev “while indirectly supporting Russia.”