The President, Sheikh Professor Dr. Alhaji Yahya A. J. J. Jammeh has said that the Non Aligned Movement is relevant because it helped a lot during the liberation struggle in the fight against colonialism and neo-colonialism and it also played a significant role during the height of the cold war. President Jammeh made these remarks in an interview shortly after his return from Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt where he attended the 15th Summit of the Non Aligned Movement, NAM.

He said although it was not active at some point, the NAM is now a block to be reckoned with because it has more member states than the AU, including some of the emerging economic powers like Brazil and India. He however added that with the new challenges that face the world, the NAM needs to assert authority and stand for common interest of its members, adding that if all the leaders speak with one voice and take a common stance, it will have a greater voice than the United Nations.

On the issue of the Middle East, President Jammeh stated that the position of the NAM was unanimous as they called for an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestine. He said they pledged to take further action at the level of the United Nations to make sure that Security Council resolutions are respected not just by Third World countries, but also by the Super Powers that are members of the permanent members of the Security Council.

The Gambian leader added that they also spoke against the illegal sanctions against Cuba because if United Nations Resolutions or democracy is anything to go by, the majority of countries voted against the sanctions against Cuba for three consecutive years and called on
the preachers of democracy to practice what they preach because nobody should be above the law.

He said there has been a change of leadership in the United States and many promises have been now everyone is waiting to see if the policies will be implemented by the new administration.