NATO Medal - Kosovo Operations

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Description:

1. The conflict in the Kosovo province of the Yugoslav Federal Republic started at the beginning of 1998 with armed incidents between the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) and the Yugoslav military and police force. The armed conflict caused a humanitarian catastrophe which had to be urgently addressed by a consorted action of the broad international community. From the very beginning, NATO took an active part in the peace campaign as well as contributing to Kosovo's reconstruction process after the conflict has been terminated with the help of the international community.
2. Approved NATO operations and activities in service of in operations related to Kosovo
   • Operation ALLIED FORCE
   • U.S. Operation NOBLE ANVIL
   • Operation JOINT GUARDIAN
   • Operation ALLIED HARBOR
   • Operation SUSTAIN HOPE and
   • Operation SHINING HOPE
3. Accepted by the United States Oct 13, 1998
4. The ending date was Dec 31, 2002

Background:

1. Acceptance of the NATO Medal has been approved for U.S. 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 the Supreme Allied Command, Europe (SACEUR), from July 1, 1992 to a date to be determined.
2. Presentation. The NATO Medal will normally be presented by the Allied Command Europe headquarters exercising operational command or control over U.S. military units or individuals prior to their departure from service with NATO.
3. Medal set. The medal set includes a ribbon clasp denoting the specific operation for which the award was made. U.S. service members are authorized to retain the ribbon clasp presented but may not wear the clasp. Only the basic medal and service ribbon are authorized for wear on the uniform.
4. Subsequent awards. Subsequent awards (if approved by the Secretary of Defense) for service in a different NATO operation, U.S. military personnel will affix a bronze service star to the NATO Medal suspension ribbon and service ribbon.
5. Precedence. The NATO Medal shall have the same precedence as the United Nations Medal, but will rank immediately below the United Nations Medal when the wearer has been awarded both medals.
6. The medal is bronze, 1 3/8 inches in diameter, bearing on the obverse the NATO emblem (a four pointed star emitting a ray from each point superimposed on an annulet) enclosed in base by a wreath of olive.
7. The medal reverse side has a band inscribed "NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION" at top and "ORGANISATION DU TRAITE DE L' ATLANTIQUE NORD" at the bottom.
   In the center is a sprig of olive between the inscription "IN SERVICE OF PEACE AND FREEDOM" above and "AU SERVICE DE LA PAIX ET DE LA LIBERTE" below.

The Office of the Under Secretary for Personnel and Readiness maintains a list of "Approved Military Decorations and Awards" which is a roster of the approved Joint DoD awards and/or operations for which the medal is authorized.
This is the DoD Approved NATO Medals for Acceptance and Wear approved award/operations. as of the date shown in the document. You may want to verify if it has been updated at The Office of the Under Secretary for Personnel and Readiness (linked above)