Accessibility links

Breaking News

White House Says Tehran UN Ambassador Choice 'Not Viable'


FILE - The United Nations Secretariat building is seen during the U.N. General Assembly at U.N. Headquarters in New York.
FILE - The United Nations Secretariat building is seen during the U.N. General Assembly at U.N. Headquarters in New York.
The White House made clear on Tuesday that it did not welcome Iran's choice of Hamid Abutalebi as its new United Nations ambassador, saying officials had told Tehran that the selection was “not viable.”

But White House spokesman Jay Carney stopped short of saying Abutalebi would be barred from entering the United States because of his alleged role in the 1979-1981 hostage crisis, during which radical Iranian students held U.S. Embassy staff for 444 days.

“We've informed the government of Iran that this potential selection is not viable,” Carney told reporters.

Asked to explain what “not viable” meant, Carney said: “It's diplomatic jargon to mean what you want it to mean.”

He declined to elaborate on whether Abutalebi would be barred from the country, and emphasized that Iran's choice of Abutalebi was a “potential selection” that had “not been formally made.”

Earlier on Tuesday, Iran's Foreign Ministry played down legislation passed by the U.S. Senate on Monday to bar Abutalebi from entering the United States, saying it had contacted the U.S. government about a visa.

Some members of the U.S. Congress have expressed outrage at the choice of the veteran Iranian diplomat. The House of Representatives is expected to soon pass a similar ban.

“We share the Senate's concerns regarding this case and find the potential nomination very troubling,” said Carney.

In remarks to Iranian media, Abutalebi has played down his role during the hostage crisis, suggesting he was just a translator.
  • 16x9 Image

    Reuters

    Reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the Thomson Reuters Corporation based in Toronto, Canada. One of the world's largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000 newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.

XS
SM
MD
LG