Lavrov Granted US Visa To Attend UN General Assembly - Foreign Ministry

Faizan Hashmi Published September 13, 2022 | 10:07 PM

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and a number of accompanying persons have been granted US visas to participate in the 77th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA), the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th September, 2022) Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and a number of accompanying persons have been granted US visas to participate in the 77th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA), the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday.

"Today, Lavrov and a number of accompanying persons have been granted (US) visas," the ministry told reporters.

In particular, the list of other Russian officials granted US visas includes Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin, Leonid Slutsky, the head of the Russian lower chamber's international affairs committee, told Sputnik, adding that he himself was still waiting for the documents.

The Russian foreign ministry added, in turn, that it expected the issuance of US visas for other members of the Russian delegation and prompt resolution of the logistical issues.

The UNGA 77, which will run from September 13-27 with high-level debate set to begin on September 20, marks the first in-person gathering of the body since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

On September 3, Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzia asked UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to emphasize to the US government the timely issuance of visas for Russian delegates and accompanying journalists scheduled to participate in UN High Level Week later in September, as Washington had issued no visas by then.

This is not the first scandal involving US reluctance to issue visas to Russian officials and diplomats this year: in July, Washington refused to grant a visa to Andrei Krutskikh, the head of the Department of International Information Security of the Russian foreign ministry. Moscow has repeatedly called on the UN Secretariat to resolve the issue, demanding that the US stop hindering Russian diplomats from taking part in international events.