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Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad speaks to journalists as he arrives in Denpasar/AFP

World

Ahmadinejad slams big-spending US polls

“Today there is the development of some weapons even more dangerous than atomic arms,” he said without elaborating.

The West claims that Iran is trying to build a nuclear bomb but Iran says its nuclear drive is purely for peaceful purposes.

It is the first time that Iran has attended the democracy gathering, now in its fifth year. Critics say the Islamic republic is seeking to use the meeting to combat its growing isolation as UN and European Union sanctions bite.

Attending the summit “fits in perfectly with the Iranian government strategy of building bridges” with countries outside the West, Amnesty International Iran researcher Drewery Dyke told AFP.

Indonesia, a moderate Muslim-majority country, has maintained strong ties with the Islamic republic.

Iran is currently chair of the Non-Aligned Movement, a grouping of 120 countries, and in August hosted a meeting of the group that it trumpeted as a triumph over the West’s attempts to isolate it.

Other high-profile participants at the Bali meeting include Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, as well as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay.

There is tight security for the event, which has in the past attracted few top names, with some 2,300 police deployed to guard key areas.

The resort island last month held 10th anniversary commemorations for the October 12, 2002 nightclub bombings that killed 202 people, including 88 Australians.

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