United States New and Current Military Ribbon Medals

Criteria: The NATO Non-Article 5 ISAF Medal is awarded by the Secretary General of NATO. The authorization to award this medal is the sole prerogative of the Secretary General of NATO.

Criteria: The National Defense Service Medal indicates military service during a time of war or conflict regardless of the service member's station of duty. All service members, including Coast Guardsmen, who were on active duty on or after September 11, 2001 are eligible to wear the National Defense Service Medal.

Members of the National Guard and Reserve may also be awarded the medal if they were on federal active duty on or after September 11, 2001. Exceptions are if they were on active duty for training, on short tours of active duty to serve on boards, courts, or commissions, or on active duty solely to get a physical exam.

No closing date has been established for this latest eligibility period. Eligible service members can receive and wear the award immediately. Those already awarded the medal for an earlier period of eligibility (Korean War era, Vietnam War era, or Operation Desert Shield) will receive a bronze service star device (SBS) to attach to the ribbon.

Criteria: Service Members authorized the Kosovo Campaign Medal must have participated in or served in direct support of KOSOVO OPERATION(S):

Criteria: Initial award of the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal will be limited by regulation to participation in Operations ENDURING FREEDOM and IRAQI FREEDOM. Subsequent award will be authorized by regulation for military service in operations recommended by the Joint Chiefs as deserving of this honor.

Individuals authorized the award must have been deployed abroad for service in the Global War on Terrorism operations on or after 11 September 2001 and to a future date to be determined.

The general area of eligibility encompasses all foreign land, water, and air spaces outside the fifty states of the United States and outside 200 nautical miles of the shores of the United States. Because counter-terrorism operations are global in nature, the area of eligibility for an approved operation may be deemed to be noncontiguous. Under no condition will units or personnel within the United States be deemed eligible for the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.

Service members must be assigned, attached or mobilized to a unit participating in designated operations for 30 consecutive days or 60 nonconsecutive days in the area of eligibility, or meet the following criteria:

1. Be engaged in actual combat against the enemy and under circumstances involving grave danger of death or serious bodily injury from enemy action, regardless of time in the area of eligibility.
2. While participating in the designated operation, regardless of time, is killed, wounded or injured requiring medical evacuation from the area of eligibility.
3. Service members participating as a regularly assigned air crew member flying sorties into, out of, within, or over the area of eligibility in direct support of Operations Enduring Freedom and/or Iraqi Freedom are eligible to qualify for this award. Each day that one or more sorties are flown in accordance with these criteria shall count as one day toward the 30 or 60 day requirement.

The Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal may be awarded posthumously. The qualifying period of service used to establish eligibility for this award may not also be used to establish eligibility for the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, although personnel may receive both awards if qualified to receive both.

Criteria: Initial approved operations for the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal are Airport Security Operations, (from September 27, 2001 through May 31, 2002) and operations ENDURING FREEDOM, NOBLE EAGLE and IRAQI FREEDOM. The Combatant Commander has the authority to award the medal for approved operations to units and personnel within his or her theater. To be eligible personnel must have participated in or served in support of an approved operation.

Personnel supporting the Global War on Terrorism in a non-deployed status, whether stationed at home or overseas, are eligible for the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal. Service members must be assigned, attached or mobilized to a unit participating in or serving in support of designated operations for 30 consecutive days or 60 nonconsecutive days, or meet one of the following criteria:

1. Be engaged in actual combat regardless of time in the operation
2. While participating in the operation, regardless of time, is killed, wounded or injured requiring medical evacuation from the operation.

The Global War on Terrorism Service Medal may be awarded posthumously. The qualifying period of service used to establish eligibility for this award may not also be used to establish eligibility for the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, although personnel may receive both awards if qualified to receive both.

Criteria: The Air Force Expeditionary Service Ribbon recognizes service members support of air expeditionary force deployments.

The AFESR will be awarded to Air Force active-duty, Reserve and Guard people who completed a contingency deployment after Oct. 1, 1999. Deployed status is defined as either deployment on contingency, exercise, deployment orders or members sourced in direct support, in-theater or out of expeditionary operations with an overnight stay away from home station.

To qualify for the award, individuals must have deployed for 45 consecutive days, or 90 nonconsecutive days, in a deployed status. Any contingency deployment qualifies regardless of the duty, destination, or location of the temporary duty -- including those within the continental United States. There is also no time limit to accumulate the 90 nonconsecutive days. People will continue accumulating contingency TDY days until they reach 90 days. Every consecutive 45 days, regardless of TDY length, counts toward an additional ribbon. Permanent party people overseas are not eligible for the ribbon, unless they are forward deployed on a contingency deployment. People deployed on an overseas short tour may receive both the AFESR and the Overseas Short Tour Ribbon, providing they meet the requirements for both.

Criteria: Authorized by the Secretary General of NATO for specific NATO operations. In accordance with EO 11446, the Secretary of Defense, with the concurrence of the Secretary of State may approve acceptance for operations and authorize the wear by the US Service Members who meet the criteria specified by the Secretary General of NATO.

The acceptance of the NATO medal has been approved for US military personnel who serve under NATO command or operational control in direct support of NATO operations in the former Republic of Yugoslavia, or as designated by SACEUR, from 1 July 1992 through a future date to be determined.

Criteria: Service on the Korean Peninsula between 1950 and 1953. Not accepted by the United States government for wear on the military uniform until 1999.