| Russian State Duma Defense Committee member Igor Zotov has asked UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to relocate the United Nations headquarters, currently based in the United States, to a neutral country, the Russian Izvestia newspaper reported Monday. “This will allow the states to see the contemporary role of the United Nations in a new light and will make more relevant the issue of fundamental reforms within the organization and its adaptation to the current reality,” Zotov said, as quoted by Izvestia. He suggested that the headquarters could be transferred to Switzerland. According to Zotov, the move would prevent Washington from being selective when issuing visas to participants of events being held at the United Nations headquarters. Earlier, Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matvienko was invited to attend the Fourth World Conference of Speakers of Parliament which is scheduled to be held at the United Nations Headquarters in New York from August 31 to September 2. However, US entry visa restrictions rendered Matvienko's attendence impossible. Source URL |