Bush gives Blair highest US civilian honour

George Bush presents Tony Blair with a presidential medal of freedom
George Bush presents Tony Blair with a presidential medal of freedom. Photograph: Ron Edmonds/AP



Speaking at the ceremony, Bush said the three were being given the medals "in recognition of exemplary acheivement and to convey the utmost esteem of the American people and its president".

Bush described Blair as an "extraordinary leader" who had "met historical challenges with huge tenacity". Recalling their first meeting, eight years ago, Bush said he had joked that the two men had Colgate toothpaste in common. But he said the two had formed a close bond.

"When either of us gets in a bind, a friend will be at the end of the phone," he said. He said Blair had been a "staunch friend" after 9/11, and a "man of faith, ideal and integrity" who had carried the "might and morality of the British people and applied it to the war on terror".

Bush said Blair's career was entirely entirely by democracy, and he had "helped turn generations of violence in Northern Ireland". Blair would "stand tall in history", Bush said.

Bush said Blair, Howard and Uribe would always be welcome in America, and extended an invite from him and his wife to their home in Texas after he leaves office in seven days' time. "If you've heard, we're moving address," he quipped.

Blair and Bush have enjoyed a close relationship, particularly after the attack on the World Trade Centre in 2001, as Blair defied sharp criticism at home to support the so-called war on terror and the 2003 invasion of Iraq. . Howard was also a supporter of the war with Iraq. Other Bush allies to have received the award include General Tommy Franks, who led the 2003 Iraqi invasion.

Edward Davey, the Liberal Democrat shadow foreign secretary, has criticised Blair receiving the honour.

The medal of freedom, established by President Harry Truman in 1945 to reward service during the second world war, recognises "an especially meritorious contribution to the security or national interests of the United States, or to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors". Several are awarded annually, sometimes to non-US citizens. Former recipients include Nelson Mandela in 2002, the boxer Muhammad Ali in 2005 and the US playwright Tennessee Williams in 1980.

The medal is not the first Blair has received from the US. In 2003 he received the Congressional gold medal - the highest civilian award that can be given by Congress.

Blair took time out of his schedule as the official envoy of the Quartet in the Middle East - on behalf of the United Nations, the US, the European Union and Russia - to receive the medal.