CNS NEWS: Dialogue is good and necessary, but until the Western “lust for power” is curbed, the world’s problems will remain, Iran’s leaders have told foreign visitors.
“The world will only see peace once calls for justice and the fight against oppression become an integral part of the quest for peace,” spiritual leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told a group that included political and religious figures.
Dialogue and visits and discussions could help overcome misunderstandings but are not enough “to control and check unpleasant features of global hegemonic powers,” which pursue superiority over others by exerting economic and political pressure or intervening militarily, he said.
Referring to what he called the “heinous massacre” of Iraqis, Afghans and Palestinians, Khamenei asked whether such “painful catastrophes” occur because of misunderstandings between nations or because of world powers’ “lust for power,” the Irna news agency reported.
The visitors are in Tehran for a religious conference hosted by former president Mohammad Khatami, who runs a “dialogue among civilizations” initiative and is expected to seek another presidential term next year.
The group includes former U.N. secretary-general Kofi Annan, former Norwegian and Italian prime ministers Kjell Magne Bondevik and Romano Prodi; former presidents of Ireland and Portugal Mary Robinson and Jorge Sampai; and Episcopal Bishop of Washington John Bryson Chane. >>> By Patrick Goodenough, International Editor | October 15, 2008
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