UN, November 3. /TASS/. Russian diplomats have filed about 20 requests to visit the Russian diplomatic estate in New York, closed in 2016, but all of them were rejected by the US side without any explanations, a Russian diplomat said on Thursday.

Russian UN Mission senior legal advisor Maxim Musikhin told the United Nations General Assembly Sixth Committee (Legal Committee) that the US authorities were impeding the Russian diplomatic mission’s work and demanded that the current situation be fixed.

He said the US decision to close the Russian diplomatic compound in Upper Brookville in late December 2016 was "a de-facto seizure" of the facility, owned by the Soviet Union since 1953 and inherited by Russia in 1994.

"This facility is a part of premises of the Russian permanent mission to the UN, and has been used solely for official purposes, including as a place of residence for some of the mission’s employees," Musikhin said.

He said the US government said the facility can be visited if the US Department of State gives its written consent.

"We have requested such a permission for about 20 times, at least to check in what condition our property currently is and to make sure that no incidents have taken place. Every time, the US Department of State turned down our requests, without offering any explanations or giving other possible dates for the visit. In essence, we have de-facto been denied access to our own property," the Russian diplomat said.

He added that under those circumstances, the US side "bears full responsibility for any damage" done to the Russian diplomatic compound.