'Colonel Sanders' gains UN access

A man dressed up as KFC mascot Colonel Sanders has evaded security to be photographed with the new president of the UN General Assembly.

Actor Robert Thompson was snapped with Ali Treki as part of a publicity stunt from the fast food chain, which is supposedly lobbying for the recognition of its 'Grilled Nation', Canwest News Service reports.

Michele Montas, a spokeswoman for secretary-general Ban Ki-moon, said: "It should not have happened - that I will stress, and very strongly. There was some lapse in security and the individual in question was, on the initiative of one security guard, taken into the UN.

"The UN cannot be involved in a commercial venture. Period. This is being touched upon by our legal department."

Treki's spokesman Jean-Victor Nkol said: "There was no meeting, no appointment scheduled with the actor impersonating Colonel Sanders."

He added that "there was a brief encounter with the president of the General Assembly" and that Treki shook Thompson's hand because "he's a very polite man".