Berlin, Jan 29 (AP/UNB) — U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has been chosen as the winner of a prestigious German prize for contributions to European unity.

The city of Aachen announced Tuesday that Guterres has been awarded the International Charlemagne Prize.

The award committee said Guterres is "an outstanding advocate for the European model of society, for pluralism, tolerance and dialogue, for open and caring societies, for the strengthening and consolidation of multilateral cooperation."

The former Portuguese prime minister and U.N. refugee chief follows last year's winner, French President Emmanuel Macron, and previous laureates including former U.S. President Bill Clinton, Popes Francis and John Paul II, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

The Holy Roman emperor Charlemagne once ruled a swath of western Europe from Aachen, where the prize ceremony will be held May 30.