US denies visas to members of Iranian president’s UN delegation

The United States has denied visas to some members of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s delegation, including members of his communications team, ahead of this week’s UN General Assembly, Iranian state media reported on Monday.

Pezeshkian is expected to become the highest-ranking Iranian official to visit the US since the Middle East war began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran in February. He is scheduled to address the UN General Assembly on Wednesday.

Iran’s state news agency IRNA described the visa decision as an “unprecedented hostile move” by the Trump administration. Mehr news agency also reported the development, citing a spokesperson for the Iranian presidency.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei accused Washington of restricting access to information, referring to recent US measures against three major American media outlets over their reporting.

“When an administration slams its doors shut — even on American journalists it happens to dislike — and bars foreign reporters, including the Iranian president's media team, whose voices it would rather silence, it is not managing access; it is trying to hide the truth,” Baqaei said on X.

The US has approved travel by the Iranian delegation for the UN General Assembly but plans to impose restrictions similar to those introduced last year. The State Department said members of the Iranian delegation would not be permitted to purchase luxury goods and certain other items.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who is part of the delegation, left Iran on Sunday evening and travelled to Qatar for a stopover.

Meanwhile, Iran says it has conveyed conditions to the US through Qatar, which is acting as a mediator, for reopening the strategic Strait of Hormuz to oil and gas shipping. Tehran has sought to restrict traffic through the waterway since the war began.

The United States has responded by imposing a counterblockade on Iranian ports.