Vice President Joe Biden receives highest US civilian honor
President Barack Obama has awarded an emotional and surprised Joe Biden the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest US civilian honour.
Mr Obama praised his vice-president for his "faith in your fellow Americans, for your love of country and your lifetime of service".
The award comes as both men prepare to leave office when Donald Trump is inaugurated on 20 January.
Mr Biden has said he plans to stay active in Democratic Party politics.
'No inkling'
A visibly emotional Joe Biden stood by as Mr Obama heaped praise on what he called the "best possible choice, not just for me, but for the American people".
The medal was awarded with distinction, according to the New York Times.
That additional honour has been reserved in recent administrations for just a handful of recipients, including Pope John Paul II.
Mr Obama joked that the internet would have one last chance to mock the pair's "bromance".
Mr Obama said that Mr Biden's career was "nowhere close to finished" both at home or abroad.
Mr Biden has said he plans to work on policy issues at institutes at the University of Delaware and University of Pennsylvania, and continue his efforts tackling cancer, which claimed his son Beau in 2015.
Mr Biden gave an hour-long interview with media outlets on Thursday in which he strongly criticised Mr Trump for his condemnation of the US intelligence services.
"It is really very damaging in my view to our standing in the world for a president to take one of the crown jewels of our national defence and denigrate it," Mr Biden said.
"It plays into, particularly now, the Russian narrative that America doesn't know what it's doing."
However, he was full of praise for his successor, Mike Pence, saying he had sent him memos on how to handle certain situations.