Russia says no U.S. visas yet for Lavrov visit to United Nations

 
INA-sources
 
Russia has asked for 56 visas from the United States to allow Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his delegation to travel to New York for the annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations this month, but so far has received none.
 
In a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, seen by Reuters on Friday, Russia’s UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said this was “alarming” because during the past several months Washington had “been constantly refusing to grant entry visas” to a number of Russian delegates for other UN events.
 
 
The United States takes seriously its obligations as UN host country, said a State Department spokesperson, adding that visa records are confidential under US law so it could not comment on individual cases.
 
Under the 1947 UN “headquarters agreement,” the United States is generally required to allow access to the United Nations for foreign diplomats. But Washington says it can deny visas for “security, terrorism, and foreign policy” reasons.
 
The relationship between the United States and Russia has ruptured since Moscow invaded neighboring Ukraine in February.
 
 
“We process hundreds of visas every year for Russian Federation delegates to UN events,” said the State Department spokesperson, adding that applications should be submitted as early as possible to ensure timely processing.
 
“This is especially important because of Russia’s unwarranted actions against our embassy in Russia, including the forced termination of local and third country national staff, which have severely limited our staffing and therefore our capacity to process visas,” the spokesperson said.
 
Nebenzia said that the necessary applications had been submitted to the US Embassy in Moscow.
 
Source: Reuters