KIEV (AA) - Ukraine has awarded NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen with its highest honor. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko presented Rasmussen with the Ukraine Freedom award Thursday in capital Kiev for "a significant personal contribution to the development of cooperation between the Ukrainian state and NATO."
Accepting the award, Rasmussen said: "Our partnership is long-standing. It's strong. And in response to Russia's aggression, NATO is working even more closely with Ukraine to reform its armed forces and defense institutions." The NATO official invited Poroshenko to next month’s NATO summit. Rasmussen added: "Today Ukraine has a law that defines its neutral status. We respect it. If Ukraine decides to change this law, we will also respect it."