Order of Friendship

Order of Friendship
Order of Friendship (obverse)
Awarded by  Russian Federation
Type	Single grade order
Eligibility	Russian nationals and Foreign nationals
Awarded for	Strengthening friendship and cooperation between peoples
Status	Active
Statistics
Established	March 2, 1994
Precedence
Next (higher)	Order of Honour
Next (lower)	Order of Parental Glory
Related	Order of Friendship of Peoples
Ribbon of the Order of Friendship

The Order of Friendship (Russian: Орден Дружбы) is a state decoration of the Russian Federation established by Boris Yeltsin by presidential decree 442 of March 2, 1994 to reward foreign nationals whose work, deeds and efforts were aimed at the betterment of relations with the Russian Federation and its people. Its statute was later amended by presidential decree 19 of January 6, 1999, presidential decree 1099 of September 7, 2010, presidential decree 1631 of December 16, 2011, and presidential decree 308 of March 16, 2012. It can trace its lineage to the Soviet Order of Friendship of Peoples.

The Order of Friendship is awarded to Russian and foreign nationals for special merit in strengthening peace, friendship, cooperation and understanding between nations, for fruitful work on the convergence and mutual enrichment of cultures of nations and peoples; for the active conservation, development and promotion of the cultural and historical heritage of Russia; for great contribution to the implementation of joint ventures with the Russian Federation, major economic projects and attracting investments into the economy of the Russian Federation; for broad charitable activities.

The badge of the Order of Friendship is made of gilded silver and enamels. It is a pentagonal star created from diverging golden rays. On the obverse at the center of the star is a terrestrial globe, with the oceans covered in blue enamel. The globe is surrounded by a green enamelled wreath of olive branches. On the reverse is the inscription "Peace and Friendship" (Russian: "Мир и дружба") and the etched serial number of the individual award. The distance between opposite tips of the star is 44 mm.

The badge of the order is connected by a ring through the suspension loop to a standard Russian pentagonal mount covered with an overlapping 24 mm wide green silk moiré ribbon with 6 mm wide light blue stripes along its edges. When worn in the presence of other Orders and medals of the Russian Federation, the Order of Friendship is located immediately after the Order of Honour.