On Tuesday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that the UN General Assembly's 77th session must be a "moment of transformation."

"The 77th session must be a moment of transformation - for the people and the planet alike," Guterres said.    

The session running from September 13 to 27 is the first UN General Assembly in-person gathering after the coronavirus pandemic which started in 2020.    

Though the UN General Assembly session starts on September 13, the attention is mostly focused on the second week, particularly on September 20, when the so-called General Debate starts. On this day, speeches are expected to be delivered by all heads of state and government attending the session.

The Russian Foreign Ministry confirmed on Tuesday that Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and a number of accompanying persons have been granted US visas to participate in the 77th session of the UN General Assembly (UNGA).

The Russian Ministry indicated that it expected the issuance of US visas for other members of the Russian delegation and prompt resolution of the logistical issues.

Earlier, Sergey Leonidchenko, the head of the legal section of Russia's Permanent Mission to the UN, said during a UN committee meeting, that Russia expects US visas will be provided immediately to the Russian delegation to participate in the High-Level Week of the UN General Assembly session.

He further stated that due to the US visa policy, 34 Russian Permanent Mission UN diplomats and members of their families are unable to travel to their motherland, including for humanitarian reasons.

According to Leonidchenko, the only solution to resolve the issue of non-issuance of US visas to Russian diplomats is for the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to initiate an arbitration procedure.

This came after the European Council announced last week that it has fully suspended visa facilitation between the EU and Russia, thus reversing the agreement that served to simplify visa applications for Russian citizens.