TOKYO: Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad was conferred the ‘Grand Cordon of the Order of the Paulownia Flowers’ by Emperor Akihito of Japan today.
The conferment of Japan’s highest award follows the huge contributions by the Prime Minister in strengthening bilateral ties.
The conferment ceremony was held at the Imperial Palace here at 9.45am local time (8.45am Malaysian time)
The order is the highest award to be conferred upon foreign statesmen for their contribution towards the bilateral relations between their respective countries and Japan, as well as their contribution to the region.
Dr Mahathir is the third leader from Asia conferred the prestigious award after former Singapore prime Minister the late Lee Kuan Yew and former Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh.
He is on a three-day working visit to Japan since yesterday.