Russian polar explorer and President Dmitry Medvedev's envoy to the Arctic and Antarctica Artur Chilingarov was awarded the French National Order of the Legion of Honour on Tuesday.
French ambassador to Russia Jean de Gliniasty presented Chilingarov, 71, with the order for his outstanding achievements in the exploration of the Arctic.
The order was established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the First Republic, on 19 May 1802. Konstantin Rokossovsky, Marshal of the Soviet Union, Russian conductor Valeriy Gergiyev, famous Russian musician Yuriy Bashmet, film-director Nikita Mikhalkov are among the Russians earlier to have been given the award.
On Sunday, Russia's nuclear-powered icebreaker Rossiya successfully completed its Arctic expedition, led by Chilingarov, and returned to the northern port of Murmansk.
Chilingarov made headlines in 2007 when he led a Russian expedition that planted a flag on a contested portion of the Arctic seafloor.
MOSCOW, October 26 (RIA Novosti)
