On 20 April the French ambassador in the Netherlands, Mrs. Anne Gazeau-Secret, bestowed the title of  "Chevalier dans l'ordre du mérite" upon Thales Nederland's President Director Arno Peels. During the ceremony, that was held in the ambassador's residence in The Hague, Arno Peels was praised for his contribution to the industrial relation between France and the Netherlands. Denis Ranque, president of Thales was present and in his speech he spoke highly of Arno Peels' efforts to improve international cooperation in the Thales Group.