US approves visas for top Iranian leaders to attend UN General Assembly

The United States has approved visas for a reduced Iranian delegation to participate in the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Week in New York, a State Department spokesman said. The core delegation will include Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and their essential staff, according to a source familiar with the matter. The State Department framed the decision as consistent with US obligations as host country for the UN, while stressing the delegation will face limits. Officials said the visitors will be subject to enhanced travel restrictions and a ban on purchasing luxury goods, measures described as part of existing US policy toward Tehran. The attendance comes against a backdrop of an active conflict between Iran and the United States that has entered a seventh month, complicating prospects for renewed diplomacy. The fighting has contributed to disruptions at strategic maritime chokepoints; the Strait of Hormuz handles roughly 20% of global seaborne energy transit, and its disruption has affected oil markets. The permitting of an Iranian delegation to New York follows other contentious visa decisions for UNGA attendees: the Trump administration previously barred Palestinian Authority leaders, including President Mahmoud Abbas, from entering the US for the Assembly, instead leaving the Palestinians represented by diplomats already accredited to the UN. The UNGA this year will convene amid multiple geopolitical crises, including Russia’s war in Ukraine and wider Middle East tensions that have strained international diplomacy and global economic stability.