Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, Marzieh Afkham, made the remarks on Wednesday in response to earlier comments by the White House Press Secretary Jay Carney, who said Washington has informed Tehran that its new ambassador to the UN will not be welcome in the country.
“The US government’s treatment of the Islamic Republic’s ambassador to the UN is unacceptable and Dr. Hamid Aboutalebi, Iran’s pick for the UN representative, is one of the Islamic Republic’s best diplomats…,” Afkham added.
She pointed to Aboutalebi’s diplomatic experience, who has served as Iran’s envoy in Italy, Belgium and Australia, highlighting that the veteran Iranian diplomat had received a US visa to visit the UN in the 1990s.
On Tuesday, Carney said Iran’s new pick for the post is “not viable.” He made the remarks after a US Senate approved legislation, which aims to bar Iran's proposed ambassador to the United Nations Hamid Aboutalebi from entering the United States.
The bill, sponsored by Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz, was passed by the Democratic-controlled chamber by a voice vote.
The Senate took the measure to deny Aboutalebi an entry visa over his possible involvement in the US Embassy takeover in Tehran following the victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran.
On November 4, 1979, a group of Iranian university students took over the US Embassy in Tehran, which they believed had turned into a “den of espionage.” Documents found at the compound later corroborated the claims by the students.