U.S. A-Bomb spy becomes `Hero of Russia`

The only Soviet spy who managed to infiltrate secret U.S. nuclear facilities has been honoured posthumously with Russia's highest honorary title by President Vladimir Putin. The 'Hero of Russia' medal was donated to Moscow's Military Intelligence Museum.

Speaking at the award ceremony, Vladimir Putin stressed this man's work strengthened Russia's defence capabilities considerably.

During World War II, George Koval, also known as 'Delmar', collected secret information about the production of the first U.S. atomic bomb and sent it to Moscow.

Koval's work drastically reduced the amount of time it took for Russia to develop its nuclear weapons.