WASHINGTON — President Obama will award Israeli President Shimon Peres with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

During his speech Sunday before the AIPAC Policy Conference, Obama announced that he would award the medal to Peres this summer. 
 
The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest honor that the United States can award to a civilian. 
 
Obama focused a portion of his speech on praising the work of the Israeli president.  
 
“In his life, he has fought for Israel’s independence, and he has fought for peace and security. As a member of the Haganah and a member of the Knesset; as a Minister of Defense and Foreign Affairs; as a Prime Minister and as a President – Shimon helped build the nation that thrives today: the Jewish state of Israel,” Obama said. “But beyond these extraordinary achievements, he has also been a powerful moral voice that reminds us that right makes might – not the other way around.”