The President gave his guest a bouquet of flowers and a picture.
Vladimir Putin said that he has signed a decree awarding Valentina Tereshkova the order For Services to the Fatherland II degree.
Valentina Tereshkova made a space flight in June 1963 and spent 71 hours in orbit. The Vostok-6 spacecraft she piloted made 48 circuits of the Earth.
Mrs Tereshkova was awarded the decoration, Hero of the Soviet Union, and was the first woman to hold the rank of general in the Russian Armed Forces.
Mrs Tereshkova currently works as a senior researcher at the Y.A. Gagarin State Cosmonaut Training Research Centre.