Russia says US withheld visa for official to attend UN meeting in New York

Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations on Tuesday accused the United States of violating its obligations as host of the UN after it allegedly denied a visa to Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Alimov, preventing him from attending a UN Security Council meeting in New York.

Speaking at the 15-member Security Council session chaired by China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Russian envoy Vassily Nebenzia said Alimov — who handles UN-related matters for Russia — had planned to attend at Wang’s invitation but was ultimately unable to do so after the visa was not issued.

A UN diplomat also said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi appeared to have been denied a visa for the same meeting, which focused on upholding the UN Charter and strengthening multilateral cooperation.

The US State Department and the US and Iranian missions to the UN did not immediately comment, while China’s UN mission said it had no information regarding the visa issue.

Calling the move “an egregious instance of disrespect” toward China’s Security Council presidency, Nebenzia argued that the US, under the UN Headquarters Agreement, is required to grant access to UN headquarters for officials of member states.

“Despite all of our attempts to persuade the US side to issue a visa to him, that visa was ultimately not granted,” Nebenzia said.

UN spokesperson Farhan Haq said the organisation expects the host country to issue visas to all officials needing to participate in UN activities in New York.

Araqchi did not attend the meeting and missed a scheduled engagement with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, though Haq said he was unaware of the reason.

The session also featured broader criticism from Russia and China about global instability and the state of multilateral institutions. Nebenzia argued that the UN Charter was under strain and accused Western nations of applying double standards to preserve global dominance, while warning against military build-ups in Germany and Japan.

Wang called for renewed commitment to the UN Charter amid rising global tensions, saying the world was entering increasingly dangerous territory. Guterres noted that the international community is facing the highest number of conflicts since the UN’s founding in 1945, alongside emerging risks to peace and security.