M A I N   N E W S

NAM: India steps down in favour of Jordan

New Delhi, November 16
India has decided to step down in favour of Jordan to host the next summit of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM).

New Delhi’s decision was conveyed by External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh in New York at a meeting of the NAM Foreign Ministers on the margins of the UN General Assembly.

India had earlier offered to host the next summit after Bangladesh opted out. The summit, slated to have been held in Dhaka this year, was postponed in view of the general elections in Bangladesh. Begum Khalida Zia’s government decided against hosting the summit.

Jordan and Iran also said they were ready to host the summit but Teheran stepped aside after consultations. South Africa is the present NAM chairman, the last summit having been held in Durban in 1998. PTI