Bucharest, December 28, 2022. Servare et Manere, the association with Special Consultative Status within the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations and which implements the international Tree of Peace project, today in Bucharest awarded one of its highest awards to General Daniel Petrescu, Chief of Defence Staff of the Romanian Armed Forces. Servare et Manere, especially as part of the international initiative Tree of Peace, honours important personalities who value peace, freedom and mutual understanding and perceive the importance of actions that contribute to the well-being of the entire human society. The award was handed over today at the Ministry of National Defence (Ministerul Apărării Naționale — MApN) to the Chief of Defence Staff by Marek Sobola, Secretary-General of Servare et Manere. The memorial medal in a special class was awarded for the merits for the development and implementation of the ideas of the Tree of Peace in Romania, as well as for the General’s merits for friendship and understanding among nations.

General Petrescu was awarded the Tree of Peace Memorial Medal in a Special class with rubies. This class was awarded to a high ranked military officer for the first time in the history of the Servare et Manere awards. The handing over of the memorial medal was the formal end of the Peace Tree Relay Race, which started on September 17, 2022 in Zvolen and was attended by cyclists from Romanian Invictus Team, Ukraine and the United Kingdom. Cyclists traveled more than 1000 kilometers through three states. The relay was completed on September 21, 2022, when the Tree of Peace was planted in Bucharest on the occasion of the International Day of Peace. His Excellency Karol Mistrík, Ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary of the Slovak Republic to Romania and His Royal Highness Prince Radu of Romania, as a representative of the Romanian Royal Family and Royal Patron of Invictus Romania organization, also took part in the planting. The award was handed over in the presence of Major Gabriel Ion PMSP, a direct participant in the Peace Tree Relay Race and laureate of the Memorial Medal of Tree of Peace.

The international Tree of Peace project was created in Slovakia on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War and is implemented with the support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic. The project officially represents the Slovak Republic under the brand “GOOD IDEA SLOVAKIA – GOOD IDEA SLOVAKIA”.