TEHRAN, Feb. 19 (MNA) – Russia has asked UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to take part in the urgent session on visa issuance scheduled for next week, Russia's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya said on Tuesday.

The UN earlier reported that head of the Russian delegation to the Disarmament Commission's session Konstantin Vorontsov did not receive a US visa on time, and the session was postponed for 10 days.

"We have requested an urgent session of the Committee on Relations with the Host Country. The session will be held at the beginning of next week," Nebenzya said in response to a TASS question.

"We will ask the UN secretary general to take part and tell us about what is happening with the issue of settling the outrageous situation with non-issuance of visas to official delegates, and particularly to the heads of delegations to sessions of the United Nations Organization," he added.

Since the start of the 74th session of the UN General Assembly, 18 Russian delegates have not been issued US visas. In December 2019, the UN General Assembly called on the United States to issue visas on time to delegates from several countries, including Russia, Iran, and Venezuela.

In a most recent case, Washington refused to issue a visa for Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif for participation at a UN Security Council meeting on January 9.

In response to the US move, Zarif told reporters  “Everyone must ask this rogue regime what it is so scared of. Is it really that much of a danger for the foreign minister of a UN founder and member state to attend a meeting in support of the UN Charter and multilateralism that the United States would refuse to issue the visas?” 

MNA/TASS