NAM strives to shine more in new world arena

With the opening of senior officials' meeting of the 15th Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit here on Saturday, the group of pan-developing countries started to contemplate its role in a new world situation.

Senior officials from over 140 countries met here Saturday to discuss the agenda and draft documents for the NAM summit due on July 15-16 in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, preparing for the movement's direction-taking summit.

The summit, with the theme 'International Solidarity for Peace and Development', will focus on ways to reactivate NAM in the current world situation, address international hot-spots and difficult problems and protect interests of developing countries.

Where does it go

This is the second time for Egypt to host the NAM summit, after nearly half a century since Egypt convened the second NAM summit in 1964, when the world was still at the time of Cold War.

The movement was indeed a product of the Cold War as a majority of developing countries at that time were impacted by the confrontation between camps of socialism and capitalism.

Its foundation in September 1961 marked a fresh start for lightweight countries to stand closer to protect their rights and interests and voice their views in that hegemonic world society.

However, with the disaggregation of former Soviet Union in 1991, the Cold War came to an end. The NAM began to face challenges of its existence. Especially after the world entered a new millennium, great changes have taken place in this multi-polar arena, and even within the NAM countries themselves.

'Where does it go?' would always be the question for each NAM summit to answer.

Mohamed Jamal, Director, Research Center for Developing Countries of Cairo University, said that NAM is still necessary to exist, as it is a mechanism for different countries to narrow differences, conduct multilateral cooperation and stand in good stead to bargain with world powers.

According to Khaled Begary, Egypt's Assistant Secretary General of the NAM summit, Egypt will present during the summit its proposals to make the movement better adapt to the current world situation and enhance its influence to the world.

Bigger role in present world

As Egypt will take the rotating presidency of NAM for the next three years, Begary said Egypt will take concrete measures to achieve its goal of image-changing endeavor.

The NAM groups 118 member states including 53 from Africa, 38 from Asia, 26 from Latin America and the Caribbean and one from Europe (Belarus). It represents nearly two-thirds of the United Nations' members, particularly developing countries and comprises 55 percent of the world population.

Among those countries, some names frequently step under the spotlight of world media, such as Iran, Sudan, Afghanistan and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

Some issues among those eye-catching countries have drawn wide attention and it is an opportunity for the NAM to carry out coordination in dealing with political crisis so as to contribute to the world peace and stability. Begary said Egypt has proposed to set up a 'think tank' for offering advices for the movement to properly handle various issues among its member states.

Besides risk management, NAM countries are also seeking development, particularly during the ongoing global financial crisis which has hampered the economic growth of developing countries.

"We have to reconsider the international structure in order to have an in-depth vision to enable different institutions to provide help and assistance for the wellbeing of people," said Egyptian Assistant Foreign Minister Naela Gabr at Saturday's senior officials' meeting. Jamal said most NAM states also face challenges of poverty, environment and poor health condition, so it is important to strengthen cooperation to address common difficulties.

Senior officials at the meeting established a Political Committee and an Economic and Social Committee to respectively discuss solutions to a wide range of issues among the NAM members. So to speak, the movement is on the right track to play a bigger role in the present-day world.

Xinhua writer Ma Wenbo

Member Countries of NAM

Afghanistan

Algeria

Angola

Antigua and Barbuda

Bahamas

Bahrain

Bangladesh

Barbados

Belarus

Belize

Benin

Bhutan

Bolivia

Botswana

Brunei Darussalam

Burkina Faso

Burundi

Cambodia

Cameroon

Cape Verde

Central African Republic

Chad

Chile

Colombia

Comoros

Congo

Côte d'Ivoire

Cuba

Democratic People's Republic of

Korea

Democratic Republic of

the Congo

Djibouti

Dominica, Commonwealth of

Dominican Republic

Ecuador

Egypt

Equatorial Guinea

Eritrea

Ethiopia

Gabon

Gambia

Ghana

Grenada

Guatemala

Guinea

Guinea-Bissau

Guyana

Haiti

Honduras

India

Indonesia

Iran(Islamic Republic of)

Iraq

Jamaica

Jordan

Kenya

Kuwait

Lao Peoples' Democratic

Republic

Lebanon

Lesotho

Liberia

Libyan Arab Jamahiriya

Madagascar

Malawi

Malaysia

Maldives

Mali

Mauritania

Mauritius

Mongolia

Morocco

Mozambique

Myanmar

Namibia

Nepal

Nicaragua

Niger

Nigeria

Oman

Pakistan

Palestine

Panama

Papua New Guinea

Peru

Philippines

Qatar

Rwanda

Saint Kitts and Nevis

Saint Lucia

Saint Vincent and the

Grenadines

Sao Tome and Principe

Saudi Arabia

Senegal

Seychelles

Sierra Leone

Singapore

Somalia

South Africa

Sri Lanka

Sudan

Suriname

Swaziland

Syrian Arab Republic

Thailand

Timor Leste

Togo

Trinidad and Tobago

Tunisia

Turkmenistan

Uganda

United Arab Emirates

United Republic of Tanzania

Uzbekistan

Vanuatu

Venezuela

Vietnam

Yemen

Zambia

Zimbabwe

The Founding Principles of NAM

* Respect for fundamental human rights and for the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations.

* Respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations.

* Recognition of the equality of all races and of the equality of all nations, large and small.

* Abstention from intervention or interference in the internal affairs of another country.

* Respect for the right of each nation to defend itself singly or collectively, in conformity with the Charter of the United Nations.

* Abstention from the use of arrangements of collective defence to serve the particular interests of any of the big powers, and abstention by any country from exerting pressures on other countries.

* Refraining from acts or threats of aggression or the use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any country.

*Settlement of all international disputes by peaceful means, such as negotiation, conciliation, arbitration or judicial settlement as well as other peaceful means of the parties own choice, in conformity with the Charter of the United Nations.

* Promotion of mutual interests and co-operation.

* Respect for justice and international obligations.