Republic

President of Belarus presents state awards

On September 19 president of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko conferred state awards on veterans, representatives of various economic sectors, culture and art, sport and military men. As BelTA has been told in the head of state’s press service Alexander Lukashenko thanked everybody who by everyday labour and talent multiply the wealth and glory of the Motherland. The president of Belarus pointed to a great role that veterans play in the Belarusian society. ‘The Belarusian public association of veterans is a reliable pillar of our society’, he stressed. An Order of Fatherland Third Class has been conferred on Anatoliy Novikov, chairman of the permanent commission for education, science, culture and humanitarian issues of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of Belarus who heads the national council of the Belarusian public association of veterans. President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko has underlined the significance of activity of Belarusian diplomats. In recognition of their significant contribution to the socio-economic development of Belarus, consistent and unswerving commitment to the interests of the Motherland and cultivation of a positive image of Belarus in the countries of service an Order of Honor has been presented to Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Belarus to Ukraine Valentin Velichko and an Order of Fatherland Second Class to ex-ambassador of Belarus to Russia Vladimir Grigoriev. Recognizing the long fruitful work and great achievements, employees of Minsk Tractor Works (MTZ) have been awarded Orders of Honor. ‘They preserve and continue the best traditions of the heroes of labor,’ Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko said. The Belarusian leader thanked the heads of the companies who contribute to the well-being of the people and enhance the image of our country using their organizational talent and by tireless every-day work. ‘Courage, loyalty to the civil duty, high professionalism and initiative – these are the characteristic features of the group of the military men and other officials of the state bodies of the system of national security who have been given state awards,’ Alexander Lukashenko said. Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko addressed special words of gratitude to culture and art workers. In recognition of the high professionalism, considerable contribution to preserving cultural and spiritual heritage of the Belarusian people, Frantsysk Skorina Order has been conferred on Gennadiy Ovsyannikov, an artist of the Yanka Kupala National Academic Theater. Director of Belarus State Circus Tatiana Bondarchuk has been awarded the title “Honored Artist of the Republic of Belarus”. The president also congratulated the athletes and amateurs of the sports movement, who have been given prestigious state awards. The Orders of the Fatherland, ‘For Courage’, of Honor and medals are the awards given to the athletes for great achievements in international competitions. Sportsman-instructor of the Belarusian national athletics team Ivan Tikhon has been given a special prize of the president ‘2006 Belarusian Sports Olympus’.