(VOVworld) – On Thursday the European Union officially lifted most of its sanctions on Belarus, including sanctions on President Lukashenko.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko (Photo: Sergei Grits/AP)

EU foreign ministers made the decision on February 15, under which restrictive measures on 170 Belarusian nationals, including President Lukashenko and 3 Belarusian companies will not be prolonged.
However, it extended the existing measures by one year, including an arms embargo on Belarus," the European Council said in a statement. The removal of most sanctions was in acknowledgement of Belarus’s efforts to improves ties with the EU over the last 2 years.