Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations has accused the United States of breaching its obligations as host of the UN after denying a visa to a senior Russian official to attend a Security Council meeting.
Vassily Nebenzia told the 15-member council that Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Alimov had been unable to travel to New York despite being invited by China, which chaired the meeting.
“Despite all of our attempts to persuade the U.S. side to issue a visa to him, that visa was ultimately not granted,” Nebenzia said, describing the situation as “an egregious instance of disrespect” towards China’s UN presidency.
A UN diplomat said Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi had also apparently been denied a visa for the same meeting, which focused on upholding the UN Charter and strengthening multilateral cooperation.
The U.S. State Department and the U.S. and Iranian missions to the UN did not immediately comment, while China’s UN mission said it had no information about the visa issues.
Nebenzia said the UN Headquarters Agreement requires the host country to grant access to representatives of all member states.
UN spokesman Farhan Haq also noted the expectation that visas should be issued to participants attending UN activities in New York.
Araqchi did not attend the meeting and was unable to meet UN Secretary-General António Guterres as planned. The reason was not immediately clear.
The dispute comes amid wider tensions. Iran on Tuesday accused the United States of violating a ceasefire by carrying out what it described as defensive strikes in southern Iran.
China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged all sides to maintain the ceasefire, warning that global stability was under strain.
Nebenzia said the UN Charter was facing serious pressure and accused Western countries of applying double standards, while criticising renewed military activity in countries such as Germany and Japan.
“The policy of remilitarisation is undermining the UN-centric international system,” he said.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres told the meeting that the world was facing the highest number of conflicts since the organisation’s founding in 1945, as well as “new and uncharted risks to peace and security”.
Wang added that global tensions meant the international system was “sailing into dangerous waters”.
Typhoon Champi swept past Taiwan on Saturday, leaving one person dead and more than 500 injured as strong winds and torrential rain brought down tr...
Kenya has recorded a second death from Ebola, the health ministry said late on Friday, as the outbreak that began in the Democratic Republic of Con...
Gunmen opened fire on mourners at a church funeral in southern Jordan on Friday, killing at least seven people in a rare attack on the country&rsqu...
Saudi Aramco has ordered staff to evacuate its headquarters amid escalating Houthi attacks on the kingdom. Two people were killed in an attack on Dammam airport, while Iran's IRGC Navy claimed strikes on seven vessels and warned the U.S. of a wider response.
Israeli military bulldozers have begun demolishing buildings in the West Bank city of Hebron on Friday, 23 October, following armed clashes with Palestinians that left two Israeli soldiers dead, according to the Israeli military.
Russian strikes on Ukraine overnight killed at least two people and injured 15 others, including two children, Ukrainian authorities said. Meanwhile, Russia said it had intercepted the vast majority of 630 Ukrainian drones launched towards Moscow.
Super typhoon Champi is set to batter Japan’s Okinawa Prefecture from Friday (23 October), bringing violent winds, torrential rain and waves up to 11 metres high, as airlines cancel flights and organisers scrap a major festival.
A powerful magnitude 7 earthquake has struck Tibet in southwestern China, killing 16 people and injuring 65, while forcing more than 12,000 residents to relocate as rescue teams respond to widespread aftershocks.
Typhoon Champi swept past Taiwan on Saturday, leaving one person dead and more than 500 injured as strong winds and torrential rain brought down trees, cut power and disrupted transport across the island.
Kenya has recorded a second death from Ebola, the health ministry said late on Friday, as the outbreak that began in the Democratic Republic of Congo continues to spread across Africa.
Gunmen opened fire on mourners at a church funeral in southern Jordan on Friday, killing at least seven people in a rare attack on the country’s Christian minority that has raised fresh questions about security in the country.
French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday described a deadly shooting in the towns of Trappes and La Verrière, west of Paris, as a racist attack and ‘a turning point’ for the country.
Armenian authorities have detained 10 more people in a vote-buying investigation involving the opposition Strong Armenia party, just two days before local elections in the northern town of Stepanavan.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment