Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, launched a scathing attack on Western powers, accusing them of spreading "war, bloodshed, aggression, terror and intimidation" in the Middle East and Afghanistan.

He called for the "awakening of nations" worldwide to counter the "hypocrisy and vicious attitudes".

Iran's leader did not directly address the issue of its nuclear programme but called for the "eradication of arms race and elimination of all nuclear, chemical and biological weapons to pave the way for all nations to have access to advanced and peaceful technologies".

Al Jazeera's Mike Hanna reports from New York on the speech that prompted a walkout by several delegations, including the US one.