24th August, 2019
The United Arab Emirates on Saturday honoured Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the ‘Order of Zayed’, the UAE’s highest civilian award.
The honour was in recognition of Modi’s pivotal role in building the strategic relationship between the two countries.
The award was conferred on Modi by the Abu Dhabi crown prince, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in a ceremony held at the Presidential Palace in Abu Dhabi. 
Russian President Vladimir Putin, Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II and Chinese President Xi Jinping had been conferred with the award in the past. Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, in whose honour the award was instituted was the founding father of the UAE.
Modi thanked the UAE government for the honour and dedicated the award to the skills and abilities of 1.3 billion Indians.
“Humbled to be conferred the ‘Order of Zayed’ a short while ago. More than an individual, this award is for India’s cultural ethos and is dedicated to 130 crore Indians. I thank the UAE Government for this honour,” Modi tweeted later.