Iranian President Ayatollah Mohammad Khatami saved the day for Kofi Annan, the United Nation's secretary-general, as he became the focal point of the 53rd UN General Assembly meeting that started Monday in New York amidst unprecedented security measures, not for him but for President Bill Clinton. Addressing 30 heads of states and prime ministers -- including Nelson Mandela and Tony Blair -- two crown princes and more than 150 personalities, the black-turbaned Khatami called on the world community to put the maximum pressure on the Afghan Taliban to stop what he described were criminal acts against humanity and religion. By condemning terrorism, Khatami joined Clinton, the other star of the day, who received a standing ovation by an audience oblivious of the release, moments before, by the US Congress of a four-hour-long videotape of his testimony to a grand jury that was aired across the world's television screens. Clinton urged the world's leaders to give the fight against terrorism, "all kinds of terrorism", top priority. Reminding his audience of last month's twin bombings of the American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, Clinton said it was time that the world worked together to uproot terrorism everywhere -- in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Northern Ireland. He also expressed sympathy for the Iranians over the assassination by the Taliban of nine Iranian diplomats and one journalist in Mazar-i-Sharif. (In a goodwill gesture towards Iran, the Taliban released five Iranian prisoners last week). Khatami, the first Iranian president to address the UN in 12 years, proposed that all parties involved in the Afghan conflict should hold negotiations under UN and Islamic auspices, adding that the talks should be aimed at "securing agreement on a broad-based government, representing all ethnic groups, communities and tendencies in that country". Khatami said that the United Nations, in cooperation with the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, of which he is the current president, and concerned states "should bring all the parties to the conflict to the negotiating table, paving the way for the poor Afghan people to freely choose their own destiny." In his 40-minute speech that was more philosophical than political, Khatami said that such negotiations, backed by "solemn global support, should bring the rogue elements into compliance with the will of the international community". He affirmed that Iran was serious about normalising its relations with both the West and its neighbours, but said nothing about Iran's relations with the US. During the day, Khatami met with Annan and Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, as well as with a dozen Iranians working for the United Nations in New York. According to a Pakistani spokesman, the meeting has reduced tensions between Iran and Pakistan. "The meeting was useful in removing any misconceptions of Pakistan's role," a spokesman said during a news briefing, referring to Iranian accusations that Pakistan is officially involved in the Afghan conflict. An Iranian source at the UN told Al-Ahram Weekly that Sharif had promised the Iranian president to do his best to secure the release of all Iranian prisoners. Asked about a meeting at the UN on Monday on Afghanistan, the spokesman said he was hopeful it would produce results. Foreign ministers of six of Afghanistan's neighbours -- Pakistan, Iran, China, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan -- plus those from Russia and the United States, met to discuss the escalating conflict in Afghanistan at a meeting chaired by Annan. To everyone's surprise, particularly the Americans, Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi did not show up and was replaced instead by Mohammad Javad Zarif, a deputy foreign minister for international affairs. The meeting would have constituted the first ever direct contact between an Iranian foreign minister and a US state secretary seated face-to-face. Informed sources later told the Weekly that Kharrazi skipped the meeting for fear of a backlash back home. "We do understand him," one US diplomat was quoted to have told a journalist. According to UN sources, the 6+2 was expected to decide on whether to send a fact-finding mission to the region. Pakistan has so far opposed such an initiative, informed sources said. James Rubin, the State Department's official spokesman, said Washington has encouraged the Iranian view concerning a broad-based meeting between all Afghan parties. According to Taliban sources at the UN, Kabul will have no prior condition in opening negotiations with Iran, adding, "the only thing we ask of the Iranians is to stop interfering in our internal affairs." Earlier on Sunday, Khatami met with about 800 carefully hand-picked Iranian residents in the United States, among them many sympathisers of the regime and a few outstanding scholars, doctors and businessmen. Both Iranian and UN sources said Khatami's "charm offensive" was "quite successful", but regretted that his entourage did not measure up to expectations.
