Lavrov Expects the United States to Issue Visas to Russian Diplomats for the Conference

There is no doubt that the U.S. will look for excuses to deny visas to Russian diplomats for the NPT conference, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, as reported by RIA Novosti.

Earlier, Igor Vishnevetsky, Deputy Director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Department for Non-Proliferation and Arms Control, stated that the NPT Review Conference is expected to take place in August in New York.

According to Lavrov, Russia has formally requested confirmation from the U.S. that Washington will issue visas to all members of the Russian delegation without exception who will be sent to New York to participate in the conference.

“They gave us a document that, in general, is not deceitful, but we accepted it; now we are practically checking how ready they will be to fulfill their obligations. I have no doubt that they will try to find some reasons for not issuing visas to our delegates,” Lavrov said during a meeting with MGIMO students and faculty.

The NPT Review Conference is a crucial event for discussions on nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament, held every five years. It was originally scheduled to take place at the UN headquarters in New York in the spring of 2020, but it has been postponed multiple times due to the pandemic.