US Gov't Denies Visa to Iranian President and Foreign Minister

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani and Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif won't be able to attend the next session of the UN General Assembly due to the US government's refusal to grant them a visa to travel to New York.

Rouhani and his delegation were scheduled to travel to New York on Monday, September 16, to attend the annual UN meeting, but that possibility seems unlikely, IRNA news agency said on Thursday.

'If visas are not issued in the next few hours, that trip is likely to be canceled,' IRNA reported.

Perhaps one of the reasons for the visa refusal is based on the decision of the US State Department to include the head of Iranian diplomacy in a list of state sponsors of terrorism.

Previously, the White House threatened to ban Zarif from entering the United States.

During his last visit to New York in July, Javad Zarif could only go to the UN, the Iranian mission to the United Nations, the residence of the Iranian ambassador to the UN and the John F. Kennedy airport in New York.

'The absence of the Islamic Republic in the General Assembly will show that, contrary to Iran's attachment to its commitments to the UN and international organizations, the diplomacy has no value for the United States,' a comment from IRNA agency said.

The debates of the main world body will begin on Tuesday, September 24.

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