Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal

Created in 1961, the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal may be awarded to members of the Armed Forces of the United States who after 1 July 1958 participate as members of US military units in a US military operation in which service members of any Military Department participate, in the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), in significant numbers and encounter during such participation foreign armed opposition, or are otherwise place in such a position that in the opinion of the JCS, hostile action by foreign armed forces was imminent even though it does not materialise. The Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal may be authorised for three categories of operations: US military operations; US military operations in direct support of the United Nations; and US operations of assistance to friendly foreign nations. The medal is only awarded for operations for which no other US campaign medal exists.

Until the creation of the Vietnam Service Medal, this medal was awarded for service in Vietnam.