Russian President Vladimir Putin has awarded Maria Zakharova, Director of the Information and Press Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the country, the official representative of the department, with the Order of Merit for the Fatherland, IV degree.

Axar.az reports that the relevant decree was published on Thursday, April 17.

The head of state awarded Zakharova “for her contribution to the implementation of the foreign policy course of the Russian Federation and for many years of conscientious diplomatic service.”

Maria Vladimirovna Zakharova was born on December 24, 1975, in Moscow. In 1998, she graduated from the Faculty of International Information of the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MSIRI), majoring in international journalism. She holds the diplomatic rank of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary. She speaks English and Chinese.

In August 2015, she was appointed Director of the Information and Press Department of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.