So far there has been no official confirmation from Washington that it has rejected Zarif’s visa application. Zarif was speaking to reporters in Tehran at a gathering to promote an Iranian peace plan for the Gulf. But he said “denying me a visa… pales in comparison to” US sanctions and threats, as well as the “cowardly assassination” of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani last week. Zarif said the US visa decision was “a sign of the bankruptcy of the US government and Trump’s regime”, according to ISNA. In September, while taking part in the annual General Assembly, Zarif complained he was unable to visit the country’s UN ambassador in a US hospital.

Source: The Guardian January 07, 2020 13:41 UTC