UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) — UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres regrets the U.S. denial of visas for Palestinian officials which would prevent Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas from participating in person in this year’s General Assembly high-level week, said a UN spokesman on Friday.
“The secretary-general deeply regrets the announcement by the United States extending sanctions that would deny visas to members of the Palestine Liberation Organization and officials of the Palestinian Authority to participate in meetings of the United Nations,” said Stephane Dujarric, chief spokesman for Guterres.
Guterres urges the host country — the United States — to ensure that visas are issued to all delegations in accordance with its obligations under the 1947 UN-U.S. Headquarters Agreement.
Guterres will continue to engage with the U.S. authorities to this end, said the spokesman.
The General Assembly on Thursday adopted a resolution allowing Abbas to participate virtually in this year’s General Debate, a day after the U.S. Department of State announced that it would continue to deny visas to Palestinian officials, including Abbas, barring him from attending the high-level week in person for a second consecutive year.
