§ 578.31 - Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.

(a) The Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal (GWOTEM) was established by Executive Order 13289, March 12, 2003. It is authorized for award to members of the Armed Forces of the United States who deploy abroad for service in the Global War on Terrorism operations on or after September 11, 2001 to a date to be determined. Operations approved for the GWOTEM are provided in paragraph (g) of this section.

(b) Procedures. (1) The Secretary of Defense in consultation with the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff will designate approved operations on a case-by-case basis when requested by the Combatant Commanders.

(2) The general area of eligibility (AOE) 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. The Secretary of Defense, when recommended by the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, shall designate the specific area of eligibility per qualifying operation.

(3) Because counter-terrorism operations are global in nature, the AOE for an approved operation may be deemed to be non-contiguous. The Combatant Commander has the authority to approve award of the medal for units and personnel deployed within his or her theater. Under no conditions will units or personnel within the United States, the general region excluded in paragraph (b)(2) this section be deemed eligible for the GWOTEM.

(c) Criteria. 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 AOE, or meet one of 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 AOE.

(2) While participating in the designated operation, regardless of time, is killed, wounded or injured requiring medical evacuation from the AOE.

(3) Service members participating as a regularly assigned air crew member flying sorties into, out of, within, or over the AOE in direct support of Operations Enduring Freedom and/or Iraqi Freedom are eligible to qualify for award of the GWOTEM. 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.

(d) General. (1) The GWOTEM may be awarded posthumously.

(2) Service members may be awarded both the GWOTEM and the Global War on Terrorism Service Medal (GWOTSM) if they meet the criteria for both awards; however, the qualifying period of service used to establish eligibility for one award cannot be used to justify eligibility for the other award.

(3) Order of Precedence. The GWOTEM will be worn before the GWOTSM and both shall directly follow the Kosovo Campaign Medal (KCM) (i.e., KCM, GWOTEM, GWOTSM, Korea Defense Service Medal (KDSM), etc.).

(4) Subsequent awards. Only one award of the GWOTEM may be authorized to any individual; therefore, an appurtenance (e.g., oak leaf cluster, bronze service star) is authorized for wear on the GWOTEM.

(e) [Reserved]

(f) Battle stars. (1) Battle stars may be applicable for service members who were engaged in actual combat against the enemy and under circumstances involving grave danger of death or serious bodily injury from enemy action. Only the Combatant Commander can initiate a request for a Battle Star. The request will contain the specific unit(s) or individual(s) engaged in actual combat, the duration for which actual combat was sustained, and a detailed description of the actions against the enemy.

(2) The Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) is the approving authority for Battle Stars.

(3) The approval of battle stars by the CJCS is the authority for the senior Army commander in the combat theater to approve campaign participation credit. See paragraph 7-18, Table 7-1 and Figure 7-1, AR 600-8-22.

(g) Approved operations. Initial award of the GWOTEM is limited to service members deployed abroad in Operations ENDURING FREEDOM and IRAQI FREEDOM in the following designated specific geographic areas of eligibility AOE: Algeria, Bahrain, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria (Bourgas), Chad, Colombia, Crete, Guantanamo Bay Cuba, Cyprus, Diego Garcia, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Georgia, Hungary, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kosovo (only specific GWOT operations not associated with operations qualifying for the Kosovo Campaign Medal), Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Oman, Pakistan, Philippines, Qatar, Romania (Constanta), Saudia Arabia, Somalia, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Yemen, that portion of the Arabian Sea north of 10 degrees north latitude and west of 68 degrees longitude, Bab El Mandeb, Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Aqaba, Gulf of Oman, Gulf of Suez, that portion of the Mediterranean Sea east of 28 degrees east longitude, Mediterranean Sea (“Boarding And Searching” Vessel Operations), Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Strait of Hormuz, and the Suez Canal.

(h) Description—(1) Ribbon. The different topographies our Armed Forces operate in are represented by the colors tan for the deserts, green for the grass or woodlands, blue for the waterways and white for the snowy regions. Blue also alludes the atmosphere, the zone of airstrikes. Gold is emblematic of excellence and high achievement. The red, white and blue stripes at center highlight this nation's role in the global war on terrorism.

(2) Obverse. The eagle, strong, keen of eye and vigilant, represents the United States and our resolve to make the world safe from the terrorism. The polestar and globe highlight the worldwide scope of this mission to secure our freedoms.

(3) Reverse. The torch and fasces denote freedom and justice. The laurel represents honor and high esteem.