Meanwhile, off the coast of Iran...

Well its been a very eventful day. It started with the hope that we would still be able to enter Bushehr, the port in Iran we have been hoping to visit, and ended with dolphins playing off the bow as we sailed slowly out of the area tonight. Although disappointed that we haven't been given permission to enter Iran on this occasion, I am excited that we have begun our tour to bring our message of hope for a nuclear free middle east to this region.

As part of a series of activities on the Rainbow Warrior, in Israel outside the Parliament and in Istanbul we are pointing out that this region is at a nuclear cross roads - just about every country is considering 'going nuclear'. We are asking the people of this region a very serious question - is there any possible benefit of nuclear technology that outweighs the costs of a nuclear middle east?

Nuclear weapons provide no one with security and threaten everyone. Nuclear energy brings with it the enormous risk of accident and the danger it will be used to make nuclear weapons. And the crazy thing is that there is an alternative: research recently conducted by Greenpeace demonstrates that the people of the Middle East can easily meet their future energy needs through peaceful, renewable energy - which will actually be cheaper and therefore enhance economic development.

And although we haven't managed to visit Iran with the ship this time, we will be back. We have received enormous support from a great many people in Iran from NGOs, to politicians and other senior Iranians who want to work with us and are encouraging us to talk about this issue in their country. They share our vision of a green and peaceful future and we are looking forward to working with them towards our next visit to Iran.

For more information on the Rainbow Warrior's Tour of the Middle East visit this website.

Let the Sun Shine

Nicky