Vladimir Putin awards Alexander Lukashenko with Order of St. Andrew the First-Called Apostle

A solemn ceremony of awarding President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko with the highest state award of the Russian Federation - the Order of St. Andrew the Apostle - took place in the Kremlin, BELTA reports.

The order was presented to the Belarusian leader by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The Order of St. Andrew the Apostle is the highest state order of the Russian Federation (the first order and the highest award in the Russian Empire). The award was established at the end of the XVII century by Peter the Great in honor of the Apostle Andrew. In total, until 1917, the award was given to more than 1 thousand people.

After the October Revolution, the order, like all other awards of the Russian Empire, was abolished. But in 1998, by decree of the President of Russia, it was restored as the highest state award. According to the statute, it can be awarded to outstanding statesmen, public figures and other citizens of the Russian Federation for “exceptional services contributing to the prosperity, greatness and glory of Russia”, as well as leaders and heads of governments of foreign countries for “outstanding services to the Russian Federation”.

Since 1998, 26 people have been awarded the Order. Among them are President Xi Jinping of China, Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, and now former leaders of Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan Heydar Aliyev and Nursultan Nazarbayev.