Philippe Jeantaud, France’s ambassador to Lithuania says that Landsbergis has been honored with the award by President Francois Hollande‘s decree for his “special merits in serving the Freedom and Europe, which regained Lithuania thanks to him”.
The National Order of the Legion of Honor, or the Ordre national de la Légion d’honneur in French, was established by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1802.
Landsbergis back in 1997 was awarded by France with a second class Order of the Legion of Honour. He has also been honored with tens of awards and prizes by other countries, including Lithuania’s Order of Vytautas the Great with the Golden Chain and the Grand Cross of the Order of the Cross of Vytis.
Landsbergis presided over the parliamentary session of March 11, 1990 which declared the restoration of Lithuania’s independence from the Soviet Union. Over the following two years, the country, led by him, stood up to the pressure from Moscow and consolidated its statehood.
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