Before leaving for New York on Sunday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow “will not forgive” the United States for refusing to issue visas to journalists who would accompany him to the United Nations.
“We will not forget, we will not forgive,” Lavrov warned the press. Russia will chair the UN Security Council this month.
The US State Department responded to a question from the French news agency AFP that the ministry regularly issues visas to Russian delegations for events at the UN. It pointed to restrictions imposed by Russia on US embassy staff in Moscow as an explanation for the delay in processing visa applications. Since the military offensive in Ukraine, embassy staff have been reduced to a minimum.
Lavrov’s last visit to the UN dates back to last September, when the General Assembly met. On Monday, the minister is likely to meet UN chief Antonio Guterres in New York before chairing a session on the Middle East.
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