Lukashenko, Putin to meet in Moscow

Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin are set to hold a bilateral meeting in Moscow on 9 October, BelTA has learned.

The heads of state are expected to discuss topical issues related to further development of the Russian-Belarusian relations of strategic cooperation and alliance with a focus on integration cooperation within the Union State.

As the press service of the Russian president reported earlier, a solemn ceremony of presenting the highest state award of the Russian Federation - the Order of St. Andrew the Apostle the First-Called - to the president of Belarus will take place during the meeting.

The Order of St. Andrew the Apostle the First-Called 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 17th century by Peter the Great in honor of the Apostle Andrew. In total, more than 1,000 people received the award until 1917.

Following the October Revolution, the Order, like all other awards of the Russian Empire, was abolished. 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 heads of state and heads of government of other countries for “outstanding services to the Russian Federation”.

A total of 26 people have been awarded the Order since 1998. Among them are Chinese President Xi Jinping, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and former leaders of Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan Heydar Aliyev and Nursultan Nazarbayev.