Derided by the United States and incomprehensible to many in the West, the upcoming Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) conference in Tehran serves as an opportunity for Iran to score diplomatic, economic and domestic political points at a time of crushing pressures.
With the announcement that UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon will be attending the conference Aug. 26-31, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei already seems to have scored a victory. Much to Khamenei's delight Ban will attend despite public pleas from the US and Israel for him not to go.
