Czech government officially rejects Lukashenko visa request

The Czech government has ended weeks of speculation by rejecting a visa request from the president of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, to attend next week's NATO summit in Prague. The Czech foreign minister, Cyril Svoboda, said the visa would not be granted because Belarus did not respect human rights, adding that Mr Lukashenko had asked for special protection the Czech government could not afford. Mr Svoboda said the government did not want Mr Lukashenko to use the visit to "legitimise his position" in Belarus. However he said the rest of the Belarussian delegation would be allowed to travel to Prague to attend the summit.