This isn’t normal, but then again, nothing they do ever is. And yes, this is fucked up, but so is almost everything else coming out of this administration. So here’s what’s going on. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that the United States will not grant visas to Palestinian officials, effectively blocking them from attending next month’s United Nations General Assembly. By tradition and by obligation, the U.S. issues visas to allow foreign leaders to participate at U.N. headquarters in New York, even for governments under some of the harshest American sanctions.
Under the UN Headquarters Agreement, the United States is required to provide access to representatives traveling to the UN, regardless of political disputes. That’s why, year after year, delegations from countries like Iran, North Korea, Cuba, and Syria (all under broad U.S. sanctions) still attend the UN General Assembly without obstruction. Their presence underscores a long-standing commitment to international law and the principle that diplomacy, not isolation, takes center stage at the UN.
Denying Palestinian officials this same access breaks with that precedent. It isn’t just unusual, it’s a dangerous deviation from norms the United States has upheld for decades!
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