After US Claims Of Iran Diplomats "Kicked Out", Tehran's "Oozes Defeat" Jab

All Iranian diplomats left the United Nations General Assembly held in New York as per schedule, Tehran's foreign minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday, refuting US claims that the country's UN representatives had been "kicked out".

"All Iranian diplomats who attended UNGA, except one who departed earlier, left as scheduled," Araghchi said in a post on X on Sunday.

Earlier in the day, a US official told the media that the State Department had "kicked out" Iran's UNGA delegation, several days after they were asked to leave the country.

Shutting down the claims, Araghchi said the statement "oozes of desperation and defeat, and is inconsistent with UN host nation obligations." He posted the screenshot of a news article reporting on the supposed incident.

"Taking pride in fake diplomat "expulsion" is inappropriate for the head of any diplomatic corps," Araghchi, who is also one of Iran's top diplomats in its negotiations linked to the US war, said.

The US official, talking to news agency AFP, had said Secretary of State Marco Rubio "means business."

"Two more members of the Iranian delegation were found still in (New York) long after the United Nations General Assembly had passed. They have now been kicked out of the US," the official had said.

READ | "Negotiations Based On Justice": Iran Says No Military Solution To US War

The US claims and Iran's subsequent counter is the latest flashpoint between the two countries, whose diplomatic talks to end the February 28 war have faltered time and again. Recently, US President Donald Trump rejected Iran's seven conditions to open the Strait of Hormuz - the key waterway that has remained a chokepoint during the conflict.

The US official said two Iranian diplomats did not follow a State Department order to leave the country, according to a report by Axios.

On Friday, the US told the Iranian mission to the UN that it was aware that the two diplomats were still in New York despite being asked to leave.

Araghchi's jibe at the US comes hours after he told America that there was no military solution to their conflict in the Middle East.

"If our enemies again choose the path of military confrontation, our response will be stronger than before, and we will defend ourselves with even more force," he said, adding that "only negotiations based on justice and fairness", and not sanctions, could end the conflict.