European Order of Merit Appointments Decision

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Decision of the selection committee of the European Order of Merit of 2 March 2026 on appointments to the European Order of Merit

OJ C, C/2026/1817, 25.3.2026, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2026/1817/oj (BG, ES, CS, DA, DE, ET, EL, EN, FR, GA, HR, IT, LV, LT, HU, MT, NL, PL, PT, RO, SK, SL, FI, SV)

ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2026/1817/oj

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| | Official Journal
of the European Union | EN

C series |

| | C/2026/1817 | 25.3.2026 |
DECISION OF THE SELECTION COMMITTEE OF THE EUROPEAN ORDER OF MERIT

of 2 March 2026

on appointments to the European Order of Merit

(C/2026/1817)

THE SELECTION COMMITTEE,

Having regard to the Decision of the Bureau of the European Parliament of 5 May 2025 laying down the Rules on the European Order of Merit (1), and in particular Article 6 thereof,

Whereas:

| (1) | The European Order of Merit (‘the Order’) was established by the Decision of the Bureau of the European Parliament of 5 May 2025 laying down the Rules on the European Order of Merit (‘Rules on the European Order of Merit’), to honour the achievements of individuals who have made a significant contribution to European integration or to the promotion and defence of the values enshrined in the Treaties. |

| (2) | The selection committee set up in accordance with Article 7 of the Rules on the European Order of Merit met on 2 March 2026 and assessed proposals for appointment to the Order in accordance with its rules of procedure. |

| (3) | The selected individuals are to be appointed as Members of the Order, as Honourable Members of the Order, or as Distinguished Members of the Order, as set out in this Decision, |
HAS ADOPTED THIS DECISION:

Article 1

The following individuals are appointed as Distinguished Members of the European Order of Merit:

| (1) | Angela MERKEL |

| (2) | Lech WAŁĘSA |

| (3) | Volodymyr ZELENSKYY |
Article 2

The following individuals are appointed as Honourable Members of the European Order of Merit:

| (1) | Valdas ADAMKUS |

| (2) | Jerzy BUZEK |

| (3) | Aníbal CAVACO SILVA |

| (4) | Sauli NIINISTÖ |

| (5) | Pietro PAROLIN |

| (6) | Mary ROBINSON |

| (7) | Maia SANDU |

| (8) | Wolfgang SCHÜSSEL |

| (9) | Francisco Javier SOLANA y de MADARIAGA |

| (10) | Jean-Claude TRICHET |
Article 3

The following individuals are appointed as Members of the European Order of Merit:

| (1) | José Ramón ANDRÉS PUERTA |

| (2) | Giánnis ANTETOKOÚNMPO |

| (3) | Marc GJIDARA |

| (4) | Sandra LEJNIECE |

| (5) | Oleksandra MATVIYCHUK |

| (6) | Viviane REDING |

| (7) | BONO, together with THE EDGE, Adam CLAYTON and Larry MULLEN Jr, known collectively as U2 |
Article 4

This Decision shall be forwarded to the laureates concerned.

Article 5

This Decision shall be published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

(1) Decision of the Bureau of the European Parliament of 5 May 2025 laying down the Rules on the European Order of Merit (OJ C, C/2025/2745, 12.5.2025, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2025/2745/oj).

ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2026/1817/oj

ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)

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