Russia says US did not grant visa for official to attend UN meeting
US Visa Denial Sparks Diplomatic Tensions at UN Security Council
By David Brunnstrom and Simon Lewis
Background of the Visa Dispute
May 26 (Reuters) - Russia's U.N. ambassador said on Tuesday that the United States did not grant a visa for Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Alimov to attend a U.N. Security Council meeting and called it a breach of U.S. obligations as host of the U.N.
Vassily Nebenzia made the comment at a meeting of the 15-member U.N. Security Council chaired by China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi that he said Alimov had intended to attend.
Other Officials Affected
A U.N. diplomat said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi had also apparently been denied a visa to attend the same meeting, but a U.S. State Department official said on Wednesday that Washington did not prevent the minister from traveling to New York.
Main Agenda of the UN Meeting
The main topic of the meeting was upholding the U.N. charter and strengthening multilateral cooperation and the discussion will resume in the Security Council on Thursday after a U.N. holiday on Wednesday.
Official Responses and Statements
US and UN Reactions
The State Department and the U.S. mission to the United Nations did not respond to requests for comment on Araqchi on Tuesday.
On Monday, Iranian state media reported the country's foreign ministry spokesman as saying that Araqchi's trip was canceled because of "overall circumstances and issues related to U.S. visa procedures."
Neither the State Department nor the U.S. mission responded when asked about Alimov.
Russian Criticism
Nebenzia said Alimov, who oversees matters related to the United Nations, was invited by Wang and called it "an egregious instance of disrespect" for China's U.N. presidency, especially when the topic under discussion was the U.N. charter.
"Despite all of our attempts to persuade the U.S. side to issue a visa to him, that visa was ultimately not granted," he said.
Nebenzia said that under the U.N. Headquarters Agreement, access to U.N. headquarters in New York "needs to be provided for all officials of member states, barring none."
Chinese and UN Positions
China's mission said it had no information about visa issues.
U.N. spokesperson Farhan Haq told a U.N. news briefing on Tuesday: "We expect the host country to issue visas to all of those who need to participate in the activities of the United Nations at our headquarters here."
Araqchi was not in New York and would not meet with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Tuesday as scheduled, Haq said, adding he did not know the reason.
The State Department official, who did not want to be identified by name, said: "We take seriously our obligations under the U.N. Headquarters Agreement ... questions regarding the Iranian delegation's travel decisions should be directed to the Government of Iran."
Broader Geopolitical Context
Iran-US Tensions
Iran said on Tuesday the United States had violated the ceasefire in their war after the U.S. conducted what it called defensive strikes in southern Iran.
On Wednesday, the White House denied as "a complete fabrication" an Iranian state television report saying that Tehran would restore shipping through the Strait of Hormuz to pre-war levels within a month in a framework deal with the U.S. to also include withdrawing U.S. forces from Iran's vicinity.
Wang told reporters he hoped parties in the conflict could stay committed to the ceasefire and meet each other halfway.
Concerns Over the UN Charter
Nebenzia said the U.N. charter was under serious strain and accused Western-led countries of using double standards to maintain dominance. He said remilitarization in Germany and Japan was a dangerous threat to global security and undoing the results of World War Two.
"The policy of remilitarization is undermining the U.N.-centric international system," he said.
Historical Context and Warnings
"Countries that were defeated during the Second World War are seeking plausible pretexts for rewriting its outcomes, and their rhetoric should not mislead anybody. This is a very dangerous trend, which warrants the attention of the entire international community."
Wang said there was a need to "reinvigorate" the U.N. Charter amid rising instability and conflict, warning that "a giant ship of global civilization is sailing into dangerous waters."
UN Secretary-General's Perspective
Guterres told the meeting the world now faced the highest number of conflicts since the founding of the United Nations in 1945, and "new and uncharted risks to peace and security."
(Reporting by David Brunnstrom, Jonathan Landay and Simon Lewis; Editing by Caitlin Webber, Chizu Nomiyama, Sanjeev Miglani and Cynthia Osterman)
