Iran's President Cancels U.N. Appearance

Spokesman Says Trip Was Scrapped Because U.S. Didn't Deliver Visa In Time

(AP)  Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has canceled his trip to New York to address the U.N. Security Council before a vote on whether to impose further sanctions against his country for refusing to stop enriching uranium, the Foreign Ministry spokesman said Friday.

Mohammed Ali Hosseini, the spokesman, told Iranian state television that the trip was scrapped because of "America's obstruction in issuing visas" to the Iranian delegation that was to travel to New York.

Mohammad Mir Ali Mohammadi, press secretary of Iran's mission at the U.N., told The Associated Press that the U.S. did not deliver a visa to the U.S. Embassy in Bern, Switzerland, in time for the Iranian president to pick it up before for the council session Saturday.

He said Russia and China were trying to postpone the session until Monday — and that if the session was put off, Ahamdinejad would decide whether to come.

Ahmadinejad had said he wanted to address the Security Council before it takes up a draft resolution seeking to pressure Iran to cease uranium enrichment, a process that can make fuel for civilian reactors or fissile material for a nuclear warhead.

The five veto-wielding members of the Security Council want a vote on the resolution Saturday. However, diplomats said the vote could be delayed because negotiations were continuing in an effort to reach unanimity and give the sanctions more weight.

"Maybe we will vote tomorrow, maybe not because the priority is to make this vote unanimous," said Maria Zakharova, first secretary of Russia's U.N. mission.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had earlier claimed on Iranian state-run radio that the U.S. government had not issued a visa for Ahmadinejad.

But Daniel Wendell, a spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in Switzerland said Ahmadinejad's and other Iranian officials' passports had been handed over in Bern on Friday. Another 31 other passports for support staff were to be ready later in the day. The passports would then be taken by courier to Tehran in time for the Iranians to fly to New York.

Zarif told reporters "the visas for (Ahmadinejad's) crew were not ready yet."

The United States says Iran's nuclear efforts are cover for a weapons program, but Tehran insists it only wants electricity.

In December, the Security Council voted unanimously to impose limited sanctions on Iran, ordering all countries to stop supplying Iran with materials and technology that could contribute to its nuclear and missile programs and to freeze assets of 10 key Iranian companies and 12 individuals related to those programs.

Iran responded by announcing an expansion of its enrichment program. Ahmadinejad has remained defiant and asked to speak to the Security Council just before it votes on the new draft resolution.

The new sanctions would ban Iranian arms exports and freeze the assets of 28 additional individuals and organizations involved in Iran's nuclear and missile programs. About a third of those are linked to the Revolutionary Guard, an elite military corps.

Several non-permanent members of the Security Council have resisted the draft resolution, agreed upon last week by the five council powers — the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France — along with Germany.

In an effort to overcome their concerns, Russia proposed a compromise Friday over a proposal by Indonesia and Qatar calling for the Middle East to be free of weapons of mass destruction and the missiles to deliver them. Including such an appeal could have implications for Israel, a U.S. ally widely believed to possess nuclear weapons, though it has never officially acknowledged it.

The Russian proposal would include a recognition that "a solution to the Iranian nuclear issue would contribute global non-proliferation efforts, including those in the Middle East."

France and Britain approved of the wording, while the United States was considering it, said Axel Crau, a spokesman for France's U.N. mission.

"It's definitely a key point and probably the key to unanimity," Crau said.

He said the resolution's co-sponsors — France, Germany and Britain — still wanted to call a vote Saturday but may delay it to seek consensus. "For the sake of unanimity we are willing to make some efforts because unanimity has a value," he said.

Alejandro Wolff, the acting U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, said the nuclear debate should not be affected by the Iranian seizure of 15 British sailors and marines in the Persian Gulf on Friday.

[tucson23]

Zarif told reporters "the visas for (Ahmadinejad's) crew were not ready yet."

Um, is it just me, or does this article not identify this "Zarif?" The sentence above is the first and only mention of this person in the article...is anyone editing these stories?

[agnim]

This is such a travesty that shows the UN to be just a farce.

How can a delegation from a member of the so-called UN not have visa on time?

We have never heard of anything like this happening in other nations that host other parts of the UN?

Is our position so weak that we are we afraid of mere words from the Iranians?

What signal must this send to other members of the UN; that we are using childish and bullying tactics?

Are other members of the UN more likely to respond favorably to our childish antics vis-a-vis the Iranians? I don't think so.
It makes the Iranians seem more like they are trying to accommodate the UN and the US is playing bully.

[drinuk]

Nuke the B A S T A R D S......Now!

[mbievtea]

It isn't likely you'll hear much explanation referencing statistical necessity or explanation on the secrecy, deception, and enrichment progress from the Iranian leader. That is the kind of talk you should hear at the UN: like a business meeting. Instead what you'll hear (if the monkey gets out of his tree and comes to the US) is the same thing we heard last time from this lunatic: talk about the 'hope for the coming of the prophet into his bosom and the promise of peace when the Islamic nation is reunited under the sending of the prophet' and how 'all he wants is peace' except for the 'despicable Jews and Satanic Americans' ... well, I think you are starting to get the point of this! Maybe we'll get lucky and his plane will go down over the ocean never to be found.

[book54552134]

The Far Right is constantly carping that the US doen't wield enough power at the UN for their satisfaction.
The US is the only nation in the world that can prevent a world leader from speaking at the UN simply by procrastinating or refusing to issue US visas for that purpose.

[randalds]

Awww, it's a shame that he couldn't make it. It sure would have been nice to have at least one literate, well spoken, intelligent and politically savey president here in the US, even if it was one from another country.

[zootallures2]

Actually, he canceled because the Holiday Inn refused to lower all the light switches and door ***.

[fascistusa]

Remember when we actually trusted the Mainstream "News"?

The US stopped the Iranian President from attending by denying his visa.

OOPPS. I told the truth.

The Pet Food killing pets... caused by wheat from China laced with rat poison?? Is that even believable?? Why would the Chinesse use Rat Poison on their wheat? That doesn't even make sense.

You cannot believe anything from the Mainstream "News".

[radiob-2009]

Read the Chatham House report on the possibility of a military strike against Iran by the US or Israel.It is a long read by a moderate conservative org. paid for by the British government.


http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/pdf/research/mep/BPisraeliran.pdf

[glidescube]

I reckon we'll be at war in less than 3 years. But this time let's just carpet bomb them to teh stone age and leave them to rot. No more occupations please... Liberals and despots don't like occuaptions!

[gkc99]

So Ayatollah Assaholah's head monkey won't be coming to meet our monkey? Let me get my crying towel!

[grazinggoat]

This dude was not making it back to Iran! The British may have even had Bond waiting for him! LOL
Posted by tbweb

- lmao tbweb. Really funny... More to add, I'd say he's plugging the fridge into power. Getting hot over there pretty soon, my feeling. Some cold air from the fridge wouldn't do bad.

[tbweb]

--grazinggoat

The U.S. did Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad a favor! The U.S. don't need the
assassination of a Head of State on its hands with all the other drama going on! Ahmadinejad is Sniper bait big time! His plane may have even been targeted. This dude was not making it back to Iran! The British may have even had Bond waiting for him! LOL

[wolf563]

whats the matter grazinggoat hate to see the player get played ?

[grazinggoat]

Spokesman Says Trip Was Scrapped Because U.S. Didn't Deliver Visa In Time...
This is a deliberate act of war, saying to a president duely, democratically and fully elected by his constitutents, you are not welcome into the UN. What kind of piracy is this? This is a really low level politics. Shall we say Bravo to our Walking-Liar president?