France will bestow President Emeritus Eddie Fenech Adami with its highest distinction this week for being a "remarkable statesman" in post-independent Malta.
French Ambassador Daniel Rondeau told The Sunday Times: "Eddie Fenech Adami... is the architect of Malta in the EU and he will go down in history for that."
Dr Fenech Adami, 75, will become Commandeur de la Légion d'honneur (Commander of the Order of the Legion of Honour) during a ceremony at the ambassador's residence in Żebbuġ on Thursday.
The former President and Prime Minister will be the first Maltese national to be decorated with this high distinction.
Mr Rondeau said he was so impressed by Dr Fenech Adami's work, courage, determination and dedication to serve his country that he wrote to French President Nicolas Sarkozy to seek his admission to the Order shortly after the former President retired in April last year.
"I'm really proud that my country is honouring a person of such calibre," Mr Rondeau said.
The Order was established in 1802 when Napoleon decided to institute a merit-based distinction to be conferred on all French citizens, after abolishing honours from chivalric and military orders reserved only for a particular class of people.
The Légion d'honneur has five ranks which are, in ascending order: Chevalier, Officier, Commandeur, Grand Officier and Grand Croix. Very few enter the last two ranks because they are generally reserved for those who served in major wars.
French nationals are normally admitted to the rank of Chevalier. They can be promoted after rendering new services to the country and only after having spent a number of years in the previous rank.
Foreign nationals can be admitted directly with the insignia of a class higher than Chevalier if they are deemed to be people of exceptional calibre.
Dr Fenech Adami's admission to the Order was approved by Mr Sarkozy and he will be conferred with the medal by Mr Rondeau, who is a Chevalier of the Order. There can only be a maximum 1,250 Commandeurs.
When contacted yesterday, Dr Fenech Adami said he was surprised and honoured when the ambassador relayed the news.
"This is the first time I'm being honoured outside the context of the roles I held as Prime Minister and President.
I have several decorations from State or official visits, but this honours what the French government believes are my merits," he said.
"I think it shows that what I have been doing in Malta is appreciated not just by the Maltese. This gives me great satisfaction."
Dr Fenech Adami, the longest-serving Prime Minister since the island's independence in 1964, ushered in a major period of change when he was first elected to run the country in 1987.
In 1998, he reactivated Malta's EU membership application and in April 2003 signed Malta's EU Accession Treaty. In December of that year he was named European of the Year for his unfaltering efforts to get Malta in the EU.
He resigned as Prime Minister in March 2004, becoming President of Malta a month later. He served his five-year term before leaving office last year.
Reflecting on the time when he his sights were focused on Malta's EU membership, Dr Fenech Adami said: "I must acknowledge they were hard times; they required courage, consistency, and full faith in what I was doing... I'm pleased with what has been achieved."