Let
$\mathfrak {g}$
be a complex semisimple Lie algebra with associated Yangian
$Y_{\hbar }\mathfrak {g}$
. In the mid-1990s, Khoroshkin and Tolstoy formulated a conjecture which asserts that the algebra
$\mathrm {D}Y_{\hbar }\mathfrak {g}$
obtained by doubling the generators of
$Y_{\hbar }\mathfrak {g}$
, called the Yangian double, provides a realization of the quantum double of the Yangian. We provide a uniform proof of this conjecture over
$\mathbb {C}[\kern-1.2pt\![{\hbar }]\!\kern-1.2pt]$
which is compatible with the theory of quantized enveloping algebras. As a by-product, we identify the universal R-matrix of the Yangian with the canonical element defined by the pairing between the Yangian and its restricted dual.