UN Leader Broaches Sensitive Topics With Iranian Leaders
TEHRAN — Making his first visit to Iran as United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon met face-to-face with four members of Iran’s hierarchy on Wednesday, including the supreme leader, sessions that Mr. Ban’s spokesman described as “very serious meetings” that addressed his concerns about the disputed Iranian nuclear program, the Syria conflict, human rights problems in Iran and what he called its objectionable comments about Israel.
Iran’s state news media, which have described Mr. Ban’s visit as a repudiation of American and Israeli efforts to isolate Iran, also reported on the meetings but framed them differently, focusing on Mr. Ban’s gratitude for the invitation, their shared goal of resolving the Syrian conflict and Iran’s complaints about big-power meddling in Syria — a reference to efforts by the United States and its allies to topple President Bashar al-Assad, a strategic ally of Iran.
There was no mention in Iranian accounts of Mr. Ban’s criticism of Iran’s human rights record or the comments about Israel by the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and others, who refer to Israel as the Zionist entity and have described it as a cancerous tumor that should be eradicated. Iranian leaders have frequently denounced Israel’s threats to attack Iran.
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