Russia has requested 56 visas from the United States in order for Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his delegation to attend the annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations this month, but has received none so far.
Russia’s U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said in a letter to U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres seen by Reuters on Friday that this was “alarming” because Washington had “constantly refused to grant entry visas” to a number of Russian delegates for other U.N. events in recent months
According to a State Department spokesperson, the United States takes its obligations as a United Nations host country seriously, but because visa records are confidential under US law, it cannot comment on individual cases.
According to the 1947 United Nations “headquarters agreement,” the United States is generally required to allow foreign diplomats access to the United Nations. However, Washington claims it has the authority to deny visas for “security, terrorism, and foreign policy” reasons.
Since Moscow invaded neighbouring Ukraine in February, the US-Russia relationship has deteriorated.
“We process hundreds of visas for Russian Federation delegates to United Nations events every year,” a State Department spokesperson said, adding that applications should be submitted as soon as possible to ensure timely processing.
“This is especially important given Russia’s unjustified actions against our embassy in Russia, including the forced termination of local and third-country national staff, which has severely limited our staffing and thus our capacity to process visas,” the spokesperson said.
Nebenzia stated that the necessary applications had been sent to the United States Embassy in Moscow.
U.N. ENGAGED WITH U.S.
The 56 visas requested by Moscow include an advance team of diplomats to prepare for Lavrov and his delegation’s arrival in New York for the high-level meeting of the United Nations General Assembly, which begins on September 20.
Nebenzia also stated that no visas to the United States had been issued to journalists accompanying Lavrov and the flight crew.
He asked Guterres to “reiterate to US authorities that requested visas for all Russian delegates and accompanying persons, including Russian journalists, must be issued promptly.”
According to U.N. spokesperson Eri Kaneko, Guterres and other senior U.N. officials are in close contact with the United States and Russia about visas.
“We actively engage with the US Mission on visas… and work with the Mission on specific cases that come to our attention. In this case, we are doing so “Kaneko stated.
The United States has long prohibited Russian UN diplomats and visiting Russian delegations from travelling more than 25 miles (40 kilometres) from New York City without prior approval from Washington.
Washington sanctioned Lavrov in February, accusing him of being “directly responsible for Russia’s unprovoked and unlawful further invasion of Ukraine.” The sanctions freeze any assets Lavrov may have in the United States and generally bar Americans from dealing with him.
In his letter to Guterres, Nebenzia cited recent visa issues, stating that Russia’s Internal Affairs Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev was unable to travel to New York for a United Nations Chiefs of Police summit this week.
He also stated that Russian law enforcement officials were unable to attend a United Nations event this week on combating the use of information and communication technologies for criminal purposes.