Watch the highlights of the ceremony above and the full ceremony below.

Barack Obama has presented Joe Biden with the nation's highest civilian honour.

The honour has only been given three times by the past three presidents, with Pope John Paul II, President Ronald Reagan and General Colin Powell receiving the award.

"For your faith in your fellow Americans, for your love of country, and for your lifetime of service that will endure through the generations...I am proud to award the Presidential Medal of Freedom with Distinction to my brother, Joseph Robinette Biden Jr." - Barack Obama