The U.S. Embassy in Serbia said it didn’t invite Aleksandar Vulin, the sanctioned director of the Balkan country's Security Intelligence Agency (BIA), to an event commemorating the anniversary of a World War II allied rescue mission.
Vulin was photographed at the September 16 event held near the village of Pranjani to recall the heroic 1944 “Halyard” mission, which whisked to safety more than 400 allied pilots held in German-occupied Serbia.
The annual event brings together Serbs and Americans. U.S. ambassador to Serbia, Christopher Hill, was among the attendees and addressed those who had gathered for the event.
In a September 18 written response to RFE/RL, the U.S. Embassy in Belgrade said the event was organized by the Halyard Mission Foundation, not the embassy, and open to all.
“The U.S. Embassy in Belgrade did not personally invite him to attend," the statement said.
Vulin has been under U.S. sanctions since July for alleged corruption, involvement in drug trafficking, and ties to Russia.
He is the highest-ranking Serbian official placed on the U.S. sanctions list since the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) came to power in 2012.
Vulin did not comment on the U.S. sanctions against him.
His party, Movement of Socialists, which is part of the ruling coalition with the Serbian Progressive Party, condemned the sanctions and made a number of accusations against the United States.
U.S. Embassy In Serbia Says It Did Not Invite Sanctioned Official To Ceremony
Aleksandar Vulin has been under U.S. sanctions since July for alleged corruption, involvement in drug trafficking, and ties to Russia. (file photo)