KABUL (Pajhwok): The United States has reportedly not issued a visa to Russia’s deputy foreign minister, Alexander Alimov, preventing him from attending a United Nations Security Council meeting in New York, according to Russian officials.
Russia’s UN envoy Vasily Nebenzya said Alimov was scheduled to take part in the meeting and argued that, under the UN Headquarters Agreement, the United States is expected to facilitate entry for officials of member states attending UN events.
Nebenzya described the decision as inconsistent with host-country obligations and said the session was chaired by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
A UN diplomat said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also did not appear to have received a visa for the same meeting.
A United Nations spokesperson reiterated that the host country is generally expected to issue visas to representatives of member states attending UN meetings. The United States has not publicly confirmed the reported visa refusal.
sa
