Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker was awarded the 2006 Charlemagne Prize on Thursday for his services to European peace and unity.

German former chancellor Helmut Kohl, who attended the award ceremony, spoke highly of Juncker as a committed European who never doubted the success of European integration and helped push forward European enlargement.

The award, worth 5,000 euros (6,250 U.S. dollars), was created by the German city of Aachen in 1949 for outstanding personal contributions to the cause of European understanding, communal endeavor, humanity and world peace.

The Prize is named after the eighth-century emperor Charlemagne, or Charles the Great, who ruled over an empire covering much of western Europe with the capital in Aachen.

The winner of prize last year was Carlo Azwglio Ciampi, who resigned last week as Italian president after seven years in office.

Former Czech president Vaclav Havel, British Prime Minister Tony Blair and former U.S. president Bill Clinton have also been winners of the award.

Source: Xinhua