Czech EU presidency invites Belarus to take part in Eastern Partnership summit

The Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg has invited Belarus to take part in the upcoming Eastern Partnership Summit, to take place in Prague on May 7. The foreign minister extended the invitation to controversial Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko on the behalf of the EU presidency on Friday. In Minsk, Mr Schwarzenberg stressed it was up to the president to decide who would represent his country. Until now, Belarus’ involvement had been in doubt over its poor record on human rights; the regime in the past had been dubbed the last dictatorship in Europe. The aim of the Prague summit is to develop and improve ties between the EU and six states from the former Soviet bloc, not just Belarus but also Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine.