Malé, Maldives – July 31, 2025 — The United States has denied a visa to Maldives Minister of Islamic Affairs Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed, preventing him from attending a high-level UN conference on Palestine held at the UN Headquarters in New York from July 28 to 30.

According to a senior official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Shaheem had submitted his visa application through the U.S. Embassy in Colombo, Sri Lanka. However, the embassy reportedly did not respond, effectively blocking his travel to the conference titled High-level International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution.

This marks the first known instance of a Maldivian cabinet minister being denied entry to the United States.

In Shaheem’s absence, Maldives' Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Dr. Ali Naseer Mohamed, represented the country at the conference.

Shaheem was not available for comment.

While U.S. authorities have not publicly stated the reason for the denial, the Trump administration has recently implemented stricter visa requirements, including a rule that mandates applicants to make their social media accounts public. It remains unclear whether this policy played a role in the visa outcome.

The development has raised eyebrows in Malé, given the sensitive nature of the conference and the Maldives' traditionally friendly diplomatic ties with the United States.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not indicated whether it will lodge a formal protest or seek clarification from U.S. authorities.