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On January 7th, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif said that the US had declined to issue him a visa so that he could visit the UNSC meeting scheduled for January 9th in New York.
“They fear that someone comes to the US and reveals realities,” Zarif said.
The Security Council meeting would have given Zarif a global spotlight to publicly criticize the United States for killing Soleimani.
Under the 1947 U.N. “headquarters agreement,” the United States is generally required to allow access to the United Nations for foreign diplomats.
Washington, however, maintains that it can deny visas for “security, terrorism and foreign policy” reasons.
Iran’s mission to the United Nations said: “We have seen the media reports, but we have not received any official communication from either the U.S. or the U.N. regarding Foreign Minister Zarif’s visa.”
The US State Department refused to comment.
Zarif wanted to attend a meeting of the Security Council on the topic of upholding the U.N. Charter. The meeting and Zarif’s travel had been planned before the US assassinated General Qassem Soleimani.
Iran’s U.N. envoy, Majid Takht Ravanchi, has described the killing of Soleimani as “an obvious example of State terrorism and, as a criminal act, constitutes a gross violation of the fundamental principles of international law, including, in particular … the Charter of the United Nations.”
This is not the first time the US has abused its position as the UN host nation, and there’s been calls in the past to move the UN headquarters to a country such as Switzerland.
For example, in September 2019, the US denied the protective security detail to the Syrian Foreign Minister, but provided it to opposition members.
In an October 15th statement, the U.N. legal counsel told the committee that U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres is “concerned” by recent measures, including the rejection of a visa for a Russian national hired by the United Nations and new travel restrictions imposed on the Iranian delegation and foreign minister after Tehran refused to participate in talks with Washington.
The statement said the U.N. was maintaining its long-standing position that the United States lacks legal authority to impose travel restrictions on states in retaliation for restrictions on U.S. diplomats serving in those countries.
In response to the US recent actions, Javad Zarif announced the beginning of the Tehran Dialogue Forum, aimed at peace dialogue and cooperation.
While U.S. displays utter contempt for UN Charter & its catastrophic adventurism encourages extremism and terror, tomorrow we'll host Tehran Dialogue Forum & discuss ways of achieving regional security, incl Hormuz Peace Endeavor #HOPE.
Follow #TDF2020 at https://t.co/yMzyH0RCT6
— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) January 6, 2020
He further said that the end of the US malign presence in West Asia is coming to an end.
What the US has accomplished in its terrorist assassination of anti-ISIS heroes is to unleash global anti-US fury and a worldwide rancor—on a scale not seen in recent memory.
End of malign U.S. presence in West Asia has begun. pic.twitter.com/Hl1p0LttX2
— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) January 6, 2020
.@realDonaldTrump threatens Iran with violations of intl law— even war crimes such as use of force, “disproportionate response” & bombing cultural sites.
Iranian people responded today. Does he still hope to frighten them?
Or realize he’s turned the U.S. into a #RogueRegime? pic.twitter.com/ZezR0vGiF0
— Javad Zarif (@JZarif) January 6, 2020
Finally, Iranian parliament on January 7th discussed a three-urgency amendment to the bill on ‘’US Counter-measure” and designation of IRGC as foreign terrorist organization’ that allocated 200 million Euros to the Quds Force branch of IRGC.
The bill had previously designated US Central Command (Centcom) as terrorist organization, but today MPs added an amendment to the bill that widens the scope of the designation to include the entire US Department of Defense and affiliated entities.
Iranian parliament also designated all US commanders and US personnel involved in the assassination of the late Quds Force commander General Qassem Soleimani as terrorist.
In his opening speech to the Tehran Dialogue Forum, Zarif condemned recent US actions and its general disregard of international law.
“The United States’ terrorist assassination of one of the Iranian top military commanders has in fact opened the gates to an ugly course of action which might, sooner or later, come to haunt itself across the globe.
The U.S. has proved, once again, to everybody, its total, blatant disregard for the Jus Cogens in international law as well as for universally-recognized rights and immunities. This is the same schizophrenic approach that repugnantly threatens, in contravention of international law, to strike Iran’s cultural sites which are part of the shared human cultural and civilizational heritage.”
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