The Royal Norwegian Order of Merit (Norwegian: Den Kongelige Norske Fortjenstorden (Bokmål) or Den Kongelege Norske Fortenesteordenen (Nynorsk)) was instituted by King Olav V in 1985. It is awarded to foreigners, Norwegian citizens living abroad, Ministry of Foreign Affairs diplomats, foreign civil servants in Norway, and Norway's honorary consuls for "outstanding service in the interests of Norway". Its counterpart, the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav, is generally only awarded to Norwegian citizens living in Norway. Structure and insignia The reigning monarch, King Harald V, is the Grand Master of the Order. The order has five grades: Grand Cross, Commander (which is further subdivided into Commander with Star and Commander), and Knight (which is further subdivided into Knight 1st Class and Knight). The Order is characterized by a ribbon of deep blue moiré. The Grand Cross is worn on a broad sash that hangs over the right shoulder. The Commander's Cross is worn around the neck on ribbon of the Order. The Knight's Cross is worn over the left breast on a ribbon. Women wear both the Commander's Cross and the Knight's Cross over the left breast on a ribbon of the Order that has been fashioned into a bow. Unlike the Order of St. Olav, the insignia of the Royal Norwegian Order of Merit are the property of the recipient. Conferment Applications are submitted through the Protocol Department of the Royal Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The King receives the applications and confers the Order based on the council of the Lord Chamberlain of the Court, the Chief Protocol of the Royal Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Head of Chancery of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav. Recipients Grand Crosses Gabriele Albertini Prince Ali bin Hussein Princess Alia bint Hussein Princess Astrid of Belgium Juliana Awada Krister Bringéus Maria Cavaco Silva Princess Claire of Belgium Armand De Decker Laurent Fabius Werner Fasslabend Jaime Gama Princess Ghida Talal Harald V of Norway Jenni Haukio Toomas Hendrik Ilves Jean-Claude Juncker Kim Jung-sook Vytautas Landsbergis Prince Laurent of Belgium Marisa Letícia Lula da Silva Prince Lorenz of Belgium Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva Sauli Niinistö Olav V of Norway John D. Ong Christian Poncelet Eliza Reid Franz Schausberger Wolfgang Schüssel Prince Talal bin Muhammad Guy Verhofstadt Pieter van Vollenhoven Princess Zein bint Hussein Commanders with Star Keith B. Alexander Grażyna Bernatowicz Micael Bydén Sverker Göranson Fred Kavli Franklin Miller Riho Terras