TEHRAN, Iran — Hamid Aboutalebi will neither assume his post as Iran’s new UN Ambassador nor be replaced, at least anytime soon. The US decision not to grant him a visa will not force Iran to name another diplomat to head its mission at the international body, though it was believed here in Tehran before the row — at least among the Reformist camp and those around President Hassan Rouhani — that whoever holds this senior post will not only serve as Tehran’s representative at the United Nations but also as its envoy to Washington.
Despite the importance of the case, both US and Iranian officials seem to have the intention to let the row pass and concentrate on more sensitive issues, mainly the talks on the Iranian nuclear program and possible contact in regard to Syria, Afghanistan and other hot spots in the region.
