Iran's controversial president,
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, is set to address the U.N. General Assembly Wednesday
morning, one of several world leaders making speeches that are likely to
provide talking points.
Here are five things to look out for during the second day of the
session:
1. Ahmadinejad to speak after Obama's warning over nuclear weapons.
The Iranian leader's addresses to the assembly have often generated
controversy in the past. The tensions over Tehran's disputed nuclear program
and speculation over a possible attack on Iran by Israel offer ample material
for drama this time around.
In previous years, several delegations have walked
out during Ahmadinejad's speeches, which have assailed the United States and
criticized countries that he said used the Holocaust as an "excuse to pay
ransom to Zionists."
He
will be taking to the podium Wednesday, a day after President Barack Obama told
the assembly that while Washington remains committed to a diplomatic solution
to Iran's nuclear program, the United States "will do what we must to
prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon."
Iran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes and to fill
energy shortages, but Western leaders believe Tehran is an aspiring armed
nuclear power. U.N. inspectors have also expressed doubts about the program's
aims.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Tuesday in a speech that
Iran must prove the "solely peaceful intent of its program."
When asked in an interview that aired Monday on CNN's "Piers
Morgan Tonight" what Iran would do if Israel were to attack it,
Ahmadinejad said, "Any nation has the right and will indeed defend
herself."
2.
The new leaders of two key Middle East nations will make closely-watched debuts
at the assembly.
Also speaking during the morning session Wednesday are two Middle
East leaders who are relatively new to the world stage but whose countries
represent key foreign policy challenges for the United States.
President Mohamed Morsy of Egypt, the new leader of the nation
considered by many to be the fulcrum of the Arab world, is still in the process
of establishing his foreign policy in the aftermath of the revolution that
brought down Hosni Mubarak, a longtime U.S. ally.
His first few months in office have often left Washington guessing
at his intentions. Morsy's early overseas visits have included China and Iran,
two nations with whom the U.S. government's relations are complicated, to say
the least.
Recent protests outside the U.S. Embassy in Cairo -- about a film
produced in the United States that denigrates the Prophet Mohammed -- and
extremist violence in the Sinai have put the United States and Egypt's
neighbor, Israel, on edge.
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The Yemeni president, Abdu Rabu Mansour Hadi, has also had to
contend with violent demonstrations this month outside the U.S. diplomatic
mission in his nation's capital, Sanaa.
Yemen has become a focal point in the United States' long-running
fight against the nebulous terrorist network al Qaeda. Drone strikes, as well
as clashes between government forces and al Qaeda fighters, have become regular
occurrences.
Over the past several months, Hadi has sought to restructure Yemeni
security forces and remove loyalists to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh
from their posts. Saleh was forced from power early this year after mass
protests.
3.
The founder of Wikileaks will make an appearance, but not in person.
Despite being holed up inside the Ecuadorian Embassy in London,
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is scheduled to make an appearance via video
link at an event on the sidelines of the U.N. assembly Wednesday evening.
Assange, who has infuriated U.S. authorities by publishing
thousands of classified diplomatic cables, will speak at the event,
"Strengthening Human Rights," hosted by Ecuadorian Foreign Minister
Ricardo Patino.
Assange is hiding in the embassy to avoid being arrested and extradited
to Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning over allegations he committed sex
crimes. Assange claims that the accusations are part of a plot to later
extradite him to the United States to face charges for publishing the cables.
Ecuador has granted diplomatic asylum to Assange, but the United
Kingdom does not recognize it and has vowed to carry through with his arrest.
Assange predicted last month that his situation will be resolved
within a year, but British Foreign Secretary William Hague said this week that
the standoff "may go on for some time."
In the meantime, Assange says he will keep fighting and WikiLeaks
will continue to operate.
4.
The role of the Arab League is in the spotlight amid tumult in the Middle East.
The Security Council will hold a high-level meeting Wednesday of
ministers highlighting the vital role of the Arab League as a regional entity,
particularly during the last two years of the Arab Spring.
Criticized in the past as being toothless, the league has taken a
more assertive role during the unrest in the region in the past two years.
It voted in November to suspend Syria from its ranks as violence
between government forces and rebels intensified there. A couple of weeks
later, it initiated sanctions against the country. One month later, monitors
were sent in.
The league also suspended Libya's membership last year, condemning
Moammar Gadhafi's regime at the time for attacking peaceful protesters.
The difficulties the league's members face remain in evidence,
though, with the recent protests outside U.S. embassies in the region over the
anti-Muslim film and the seemingly intractable conflict in Syria.
The organization, also known as the League of Arab States, was
created in 1945 to promote closer relations -- politically, economically,
culturally and socially -- among its members. The high-level meeting Wednesday
afternoon is focused on cooperation between the United Nations and the league.
5.
Zimbabwe's Mugabe will speak despite travel ban and protests.
Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, a longtime African leader who
has outlasted both Mubarak and Gafhafi, is due to address the afternoon session
of the assembly.
Western countries have imposed travel bans on Mugabe and other
Zimbabwean officials, but he is allowed to travel to the United Nations
Headquarters in New York for the General Assembly.
Activists demonstrated outside the U.N. building in New York on
Saturday, calling Mugabe "illegitimate" and saying he should not be
welcomed by the U.N. assembly.
Mugabe, 88, has ruled Zimbabwe since its independence in 1980. He
has been accused of rigging elections and instituting repressive laws to
tighten his grip on power. His party, ZANU-PF, is in a troubled unity
government with the opposition Movement for Democratic Change.
He has blamed many of his country's economic woes on the sanctions
imposed by the United States and the European Union in 2002.
By Jethro Mullen, CNN September 26, 2012
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