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The recipients of the state decorations included Great Patriotic War veterans, among them, Sergei Nikolsky, a well-known mathematician who took part in the defence of Moscow and who celebrated his 100th birthday just a few days ago.

Mr Putin also presented the Gold Star to Anatoly Lebed for courage while carrying out military missions in Chechnya. Yury Shargin, engineer aboard the spacecraft Soyuz TMA-5, was awarded the decoration Hero of Russia. Scientists Zhores Alfyorov and Yevgeny Velikhov were awarded the Order For Services to the Fatherland. Singer Irina Arkhipova was awarded the Order of Holy Apostle Saint Andrew the First.

Russia’s creative and scientific elite have always acted as a guiding light for the nation, Mr Putin said in his opening remarks at the ceremony. The values they have always upheld continue to strengthen Russian society today, inspire the spirit of Russian democracy and make it possible to develop people’s feelings of being citizens and release the positive energy in society – something that is essential for creative development, economic progress and social and political stability.

The President congratulated the recipients of state decorations on the upcoming Victory Day holiday.