Caracas, July 20 (RHC)--Representatives of  member countries of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) advocated Saturday for the defence of multilateralism in the face of constant attacks by the United States on the sovereignty and self-determination of several countries.

Addressing the ministerial meeting of NAM´s Coordinating Bureauy underway in Caracas, Venezuela, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohamad Javad Zarif denounced that Washington is currently destroying the few existing bases for the settlement of the Palestinian Isdraeli conflict.   He stressed that 'illegal decisions aimed at denying the basic rights of the Palestinian people exacerbate the situation in the Middle East'. 

And Iran's top diplomat described the U.S. government's interference in Venezuela's internal affairs as a gross intervention, demonstrating open disrespect for international law.  Zarif said: "A new wave of extreme unilateralism by the U.S. undermines the rule of law at the international level, threatens peace and security, and NAM must be strengthened through the increase of cooperation among member states."

For his part, Nicaraguan Foreign Minister Denis Moncada emphasized that it is now vital for the political bloc to act in the name of Bandung's principles for a more peaceful and prosperous world.  Moncada said he was sure that this meeting "would bring great results in favor of multilateralism."

Likewise, the representative of Belarus to the United Nations, Valentín Rybakov, stated that 'conflicts are not the effective way to solve problems, we firmly believe that dialogue can contribute to the peaceful resolution of differences'.

During the opening of the meeting, Venezuelan Foreign Minister, Jorge Arreaza, stated that the world is living through a historic moment in which multilateralism is under attack, a systemic phenomenon that affects many countries; coups d'état, political and economic destabilization, with geopolitical interests or the expropriation of resources.  He explained that "Venezuela as well as Cuba, Iran, Syria, Nicaragua, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea  are victims of interventionism by outsiders who insist on regime change, in the quest of new governments that are servile to their interests."

Arreaza insisted on the promotion of the right to peace as a necessity for peoples to decide their future without external pretensions.

In a video message to the event, the president of the UN General Assembly, María Fernanda Espinosa, urged the Movement to promote dialogue among nations and just decisions, in addition to defending sovereignty and the right to self-determination.