TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran's Permanent Representative to the UN Hossein Dehqani called on the US government to speed up the process of decolonization of Puerto Rico which has been going on for 39 years now."The US should allow the colonized people of Puerto Rico to enjoy their inalienable right for self-rule and independence," Dehqani said on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), addressing a meeting of the UN Special Committee on Decolonization in New York on Monday.
The Iranian representative reiterated the rights of the Puerto Rican nation to gain independence based on the UN Resolution 1514 in 1960.
He also called on Washington to return the occupied lands to their real owners.
Puerto Rico, officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the Northeastern Caribbean East of the Dominican Republic and West of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.
On July 25, 1898, during the SpanishAmerican War, the US invaded Puerto Rico with a landing at Gunica. As an outcome of the war, Spain ceded Puerto Rico, along with the Philippines and Guam, then under Spanish sovereignty, to the US under the Treaty of Paris. Spain relinquished sovereignty over Cuba, but did not cede it to the US.
The United States and Puerto Rico began a long-standing metropolis-colony relationship. In the early 20th century, Puerto Rico was ruled by the military, with officials, including the governor appointed by the president of the United States
Puerto Rico (Spanish for "rich port") is an archipelago that includes the main island of Puerto Rico and a number of smaller islands, the largest of which are Vieques, Culebra, and Mona.
The main island of Puerto Rico is, by land area the smallest of the Greater Antilles. It ranks third in population among that group of four islands, which include Cuba, Hispaniola (Dominican Republic and Haiti), and Jamaica.
Due to its location, Puerto Rico enjoys a tropical climate and is subject to hot weather all-year-round. The national language is Spanish but English is recognized as an official language as well.
By Fars News Agency
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