Describing a well-respected person who is welcomed in a foreign country

‘Dignitary’ is what I most commonly encounter, usually as ‘foreign dignitary’. As Sam says, this is mainly used for people who are in some official sense representing their country -- diplomats, ministers, high-ranking civil servants and the like.

Otherwise, I'd say the foreignity and esteem should be obvious from the rest of the story, and simply use the word ‘guest’. Make the official esteem clear by mentioning who is the host: ‘guest’ or ‘guest of the government’, or ‘guest of the royal house’, or ‘official guest’ --- that sort of thing. Or drop words like ‘official visit’ and ‘welcomed with égards’.