Putin, Gul to be special guests at NAM summit

TEHRAN,Aug.6(MNA) – Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Abdullah Gul are to be the special guests of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) summit in Tehran in late August, Mohammad Reza Forqani, the summit spokesman, announced on Sunday. The two leaders will be attending the summit at the invitation of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The XVI Summit of the NAM is scheduled to be held in Tehran from August 26 to 31. Forqani also said that so far, 31 countries have announced that they will participate in the summit at the level of president or prime minister. He said that in addition to the member states to the NAM, 18 observer countries have been invited to the summit. The United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon will also participate in the summit, Forqani said. Commenting on the participation of Palestinian leaders, he said that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has been invited to the summit. NAM is made up of 120 countries and aims to represent the political, economic and cultural interests of the developing world. The bloc also has 18 observer countries. The first summit of NAM heads of state took place in the Yugoslav capital Belgrade in 1961 at the instigation of Yugoslav President Tito.