President of Belarus invited to visit the U.S.
The U.S. Embassy in Belarus has sent an invitation to the President of the Republic, Aleksandr Lukashenko, to attend a ceremony marking the 100th anniversary of the United States' entry into the First World War, as reported by Interfax news agency citing the American diplomatic mission.
"President Lukashenko, along with heads of other countries who were involved in the First World War, was invited to participate in the ceremony on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the US entry into this war," the U.S. Embassy said. The Embassy informed that the ceremony would be held in Kansas City on April 6. On this day, 100 years ago, the United States entered the First World War.
The last time Lukashenko visited the United States was in September 2015, when he attended the 70th session of the UN General Assembly in New York.
In 2006, the European Union, and then the U.S., banned Aleksandr Lukashenko from entering its territory. In 2008, the ban on entry was suspended. In January 2011, Poland banned him from entering the country. In April 2011, the EU Council extended the ban on entry into the EU for President Lukashenko and another 35 officials until October 31, 2011, while at the same time not applying visa restrictions against them.
On February 15, 2016, the then German Foreign Minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, confirmed the partial lifting of EU sanctions against Belarus, including the restrictions against the President of Belarus. Sanctions against 170 individuals and 3 legal entities were lifted then. Lukashenko was among the number of individuals who were removed from the sanctions list.