MUNICH, Germany: President Volodymyr Zelensky has been honoured with the 2026 Ewald von Kleist Prize for representing the courage and resilience of all Ukrainians, reported German Press Agency (dpa).
The award was presented to him on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference at a reception on Saturday hosted by Bavarian Premier Markus Söder.
The laudatory speech was given by Polish Prime Minister, Donald Tusk.
Tusk said that the Ukrainian people deserve the utmost respect of the entire free world.
Zelensky expressed his particular gratitude to European leaders for their support, but also to European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, and NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte.
The award is also expressly dedicated to the many people who lost their lives or were injured in the war.
Ewald von Kleist founded the Wehrkundetagung, the precursor to the Security Conference, in 1963.
The award honours individuals or institutions that have made outstanding contributions to conflict resolution.
Previous winners include former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger, former West German chancellor Helmut Schmidt, late French president Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, late US senator John McCain, the United Nations and former German chancellor Angela Merkel, as well as the countries of Sweden and Finland. – BERNAMA-dpa
