U.S. to Attend U.N. Debate in Geneva

The United States plans to attend a U.N. General Assembly debate next week in Geneva on the Palestinian question, the State Department said Tuesday.

The General Assembly moved the debate to Geneva from U.N. headquarters in New York after the Reagan Administration refused to grant a visa to Palestine Liberation Organization leader Yasser Arafat.

“Despite all the turmoil on this question of the visa, that has nothing to do with our regard for the Palestinian issue,” State Department spokesman Charles Redman said. “We believe the debate in Geneva will be an important one and we’ll be there,” he added, stressing that U.S. concern for the Middle East peace process continues.