George Tupou V of Tonga for the purposes of assuring that political independence and neutrality were retained. On 24 February 2012, he visited pope Benedict XVI in Vatican City. During his reign, George Tupou V oversaw reforms within the Tongan honours system which both expanded the number of Orders in the Kingdom and created rules to make the award of these Orders more egalitarian. In September 2011, Tupou V had surgery to remove a kidney following the discovery of a tumour. On 15 September 2011 he received the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary from Pál Schmitt,
Order of King George Tupou I riband are as above. The "necklet badge" (approx 60mm without the crown) is a silver, silver-gilt & enamel 6-pointed faceted star with two points upwards, suspended by a silver-gilt Tongan crown. The central medallion & riband are as above. The "necklet ribbon" is approx. 41mm wide, red with three white stripes (2.5/6/9/6/9/6/2.5mm) The "breast badge" is a similar faceted star as the Knight Commander (above) except that the white central medallion has the shield from the Coat of Arms in the centre. The "breast ribbon" is approx 38mm wide, red with two white stripes (6/8/10/8/6mm) Order of King George Tupou