The message reads, in part:
“A legendary intelligence agent and a real hero, you have dedicated your life to serving the Motherland. Your unbending will, valour, bravery and courage have left a mark in the country's military history.
Russia is rightly proud of people like you, and it is very important that your responsible civil position and you sincere concern for your country’s future are an example for the younger generation.”
From November 1941, intelligence officer Alexei Botyan repeatedly crossed the frontline for reconnaissance and to destroy enemy infrastructure and communications networks. He acted both independently and as part of large groups of partisans in Ukraine, Belarus, Poland and Czechoslovakia.
The Hero of the Russian Federation title was awarded to Alexei Botyan by a Presidential Executive Order in May 2007, for his courage and heroism during the operation to liberate the Polish city of Krakow and prevent its destruction by the Nazis in 1945.