Newsletters
The United States expelled two members of Iran's delegation to the United Nations over the weekend after they remained in the country despite being ordered to leave, the State Department said Saturday, in a move a US official described as proof that Secretary of State Marco Rubio "means business."
A US official told AFP that two members of the Iranian delegation were discovered still in New York well after the UN General Assembly session had concluded. "They have now been kicked out of the US," the official said.
According to US media reports, the State Department had instructed Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and his delegation to leave the country by Monday. Officials moved to expel the two remaining members after the Iranian mission to the UN informed Washington on Friday that they had not yet departed.
One of the two left New York on Friday night, while the second departed Saturday morning, Axios reported.
The expulsions came after US and Iranian officials met in New York the previous week, on the sidelines of the General Assembly session. During that period, President Donald Trump rejected a proposal from Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway between Iran and Oman through which a significant share of the world's seaborne oil exports pass.
Despite rejecting the proposal, Trump told US media he expected negotiations with Iran to resume in the coming days.
Iran's state news agency IRNA reported that Tehran currently has no additional direct talks scheduled with Washington, suggesting a pause in the diplomatic contact that had taken place around the UN gathering.
The State Department did not immediately provide additional details on the identities of the expelled delegation members or the specific violation that prompted their removal beyond the expired deadline to leave the country.
Set as preferred source
Set as preferred source
1 min read
1 min read
