As I finalize preparations to convene with my counterparts at the 19th Midterm Ministerial Meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) in Kampala on 15-16 October 2025, this gathering assumes considerable significance amid the accelerating complexities of contemporary international relations.

Convened under Uganda's chairmanship, this session constitutes both a review of the Movement's trajectory since the 19th Summit in January 2024 and a substantive platform for strategic reassessment. Themed "Deepening Cooperation for Shared Global Affluence," it presents an opportunity to evaluate the implementation of previously adopted resolutions and to deliberate upon pressing issues encompassing UN institutional reform, terrorism, regional and sub-regional issues, human rights, climate change, trade, development and international peace architecture. For the Islamic Republic of Iran, the NAM continues to embody foundational principles of national sovereignty and principled resistance to hegemonic structures, consonant with our foreign policy orientation toward dignified engagement and unwavering solidarity with the Global South.

Born of resistance to division

The NAM's genesis in the 1950s and 1960s represented a deliberate and principled counter-narrative to both colonial legacies and Cold War bipolarity. The historic 1955 Bandung Conference united Asian and African nations in categorical rejection of imperialism, establishing normative groundwork for principles including non-interference in internal affairs, mutual respect for sovereignty, and peaceful coexistence. This foundational consensus culminated in the seminal 1961 Belgrade Summit, where 25 founding members formalized non-alignment as a coherent strategy for autonomous diplomacy amid the rigidities of superpowers rivalry.

Iran's substantive alignment with the Movement deepened following the 1979 Islamic Revolution, with formal accession occurring at the Havana Summit that same year. Our revolutionary ethos—fundamentally rooted in anti-imperialist principles and aspirations for genuine independence—resonated profoundly with the NAM's overarching mission, enabling the Islamic Republic to champion transformative causes including Palestinian liberation and the democratization of global governance structures.

Adapting to multipolar realities

Across successive decades, the NAM has demonstrated remarkable institutional resilience, expanding from its original anti-bloc advocacy during the Cold War era to addressing the multifaceted challenges of post-1991 globalization. Initial preoccupations with decolonization and advocacy for a New International Economic Order have evolved into contemporary priorities encompassing climate resilience, digital equity, counter-terrorism cooperation, and pandemic response mechanisms. Comprising 120 member states today, the Movement now represents more than half of the global population, constituting the world's largest multilateral forum outside the United Nations.

Iran has maintained a proactive and consequential role within this framework, notably hosting the 2012 Tehran Summit to advance substantive discussions on nuclear disarmament, Palestine, and collective resistance to unilateralism. Our positions have remained principled and consistent: unwavering support for the vause of Palestine, and categorical opposition to coercive sanctions that flagrantly violate sovereignty and contravene international law. Recent developments underscore this commitment; while we have welcomed initiatives aimed at halting the ongoing genocide in Gaza, we simultaneously emphasize the imperative of meaningful accountability mechanisms and the definitive termination of occupation. Similarly, we unequivocally condemn acts of aggression perpetrated against our sovereign territory by the United States and the Israeli regime, and regard the illegitimate attempt by certain Western powers to instrumentalize the Security Council to reimpose economic sanctions against the Iranian nation as a fundamental breach of multilateral commitments and the spirit of international cooperation.

Relevance Amid Global Fractures

The contemporary geopolitical landscape amplifies the NAM's instrumental utility as an indispensable forum for the majority world. In the Middle East, the recently negotiated Gaza ceasefire offers tentative respite following catastrophic humanitarian losses—more than 67,000 Palestinians killed in the Israeli regime's genocidal campaign in Gaza since 2023—yet underlying structural tensions, including spillover into Lebanon and Syria and other countries of the region, underscore the fragility of regional stability. Zionist expansionism, coupled with the Israeli regime's possession of weapons of mass destruction, remains the fundamental source of regional destabilization and insecurity.

Intensifying economic rivalries among major players further complicate this intricate geopolitical mosaic, with escalating trade disputes accelerating supply chain fragmentation and technological decoupling. Emerging configurations such as BRICS challenge entrenched Western dominance by advocating comprehensive reforms in Bretton Woods institutions, aligning organically with the NAM's longstanding advocacy for authentic multipolarity and equitable global governance.

Populist upheavals and mounting fiscal constraints across European nations introduce additional layers of strategic unpredictability, while the U.S. administration inject considerable volatility into diplomatic frameworks. Sanctions—more accurately characterized as "economic terrorism"—have significantly impeded development trajectories across the Global South, yet paradoxically have also catalyzed resilience through strengthened South-South cooperation mechanisms. Within this complex context, the NAM's moral authority—fundamentally rooted in anti-hegemonic principles—enables robust collective advocacy.

The Kampala ministerial session convenes at a juncture marked by cautious optimism tempered by persistent structural risks, with the Gaza ceasefire providing a window for ending a genocide. Its agenda encompasses comprehensive evaluation of the 2024 Kampala Summit outcomes. Deliberations will address prevailing geopolitical tensions, development imperatives, and mechanisms for strengthening the NAM's institutional role within multilateral arenas.

Iran anticipates focused and substantive exchanges on reaffirming solidarity with Palestine, including articulation of demands for a durable ceasefire and the definitive termination of occupation; categorically condemning unilateral coercive measures as flagrant violations of international law; and exploring innovative mechanisms for economic resilience. Under President Pezeshkian's administration, we approach this gathering with genuine commitment to constructive multilateralism, seeking concrete outcomes that substantially enhance Global South agency without indulging in rhetorical excess or overpromising transformative paradigm shifts. Notwithstanding potentially limited attendance, such gatherings sustain essential diplomatic momentum and prepare substantive groundwork for future Summits.

The NAM endures precisely because it authentically represents the world's demographic and moral majority, offering a genuinely democratic alternative to exclusive, self-selecting clubs such as the G7. In an epoch characterized by cascading systemic shocks—ranging from sophisticated cyber threats to humanitarian crises—the Movement fosters strategic autonomy, enabling member states to navigate through  great power rivalries without succumbing to subservience or dependency. For Iran, it amplifys our principled calls for justice, equity, and comprehensive institutional reform.

As we convene in Kampala, let this session reinforce pragmatic solidarity grounded in shared interests and common challenges. Iran remains steadfastly dedicated to the construction of an authentically multipolar world order wherein prosperity is equitably distributed, aggression systematically curtailed, and sovereignty universally upheld as the cornerstone of international relations.