Republic of Korea Service Medal 대한민국 근무 기장
대한민국 근무 기장
The Korean Service Medal 대한민국 근무 기장 was created by Presidential Decree #7169 on June 4, 1974. This medal was/is not awarded to R.O.K. military personnel. It was specifically created to honor the long and devoted service of U. S. and other foreign military personnel in defense of the Republic of Korea. If in doubt, look at the reverse. It’s in English. This is the only Korean medal done in a foreign language. Non-Korean civilians working for their respective foreign military establishment are also eligible for this medal. It can also be awarded to the bereaved family of a person who is killed while on active duty in the Republic of Korea.
In August 1974 the Director of the Personnel Bureau, South Korean Ministry of Defense, offered this medal to the United States. It was to be known as the Republic of Korea Service Medal and, interestingly, the offer came just as the U. S. Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal for service in Korea was terminated.1 The Commander, U.S. Forces Korea, recommended acceptance of the medal, but when the recommendation was forwarded to the Joint Chiefs they non-concurred. In June 1976, the Secretary of Defense disapproved the recommendation to accept the Republic of Korea Service Medal, “because normal military duty in Korea under present circumstances does not warrant reception of such a medal.” Acceptance of the medal by either individuals or groups was therefore prohibited. Some of these medals had already been awarded to United States military personnel. It is not known how many of these medals were awarded, but when the recipients attempted to have them posted to their military records the medals were impounded and no record of the award was entered into the service records. This medal is neither issued nor authorized by the U.S. Military, nor can it be worn on the active duty uniform. Since this medal was not accepted as a military award by the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff in 1976, it most likely will never be accepted because it does not meet the criteria for acceptance of a foreign military award.
On Jan. 13, 2003, The Korean Defense Veterans Association (KDVA), National Historian, Brig. Gen. Don Mattson, made contact with Consul Youl Tae-Jun of the ROK Consulate in San Francisco, CA seeking additional information about the ROK Service Medal of 1974. Several days later, on Jan. 16, 2003, a representative of the KDVA, Mr. Nick McDowell began dialogue with the Republic of Korea Ambassador to the United States, Dr. Yang Sung-Chul, to have the previously awarded ROK Service Medal (1974) be presented as an out-of-service (Veteran) award. The Korean Defense Veterans Association maintains a website at: https://kdva.vet/
Copies of this medal are currently being manufactured in Korea to the original specifications.
The Republic of Korea offered this medal to other countries as well as the U.S., but the disposition of each country is not known at this time.
One Manufacturer’s Label
At the Center is the word 검 meaning an edged weapon such as a knife, or sword.
The arc has 흥선특수공업사 Heungseon Special Industries Co., Ltd. However, they have only used this name since Jan. 1986. The bottom numbers are phone numbers.
U.S. Korea Defense Service Medal
Obverse and Reverse
As a result of effective lobbying by the Korea Defense Veterans Association, in 2003, Congress created the Korea Defense Service Medal to recognize service in Korea on or after July 28, 1954, the date that effectively ends the awarding of the U.S. Korean War Medal. 2
For those U.S. military veterans who earned the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (AFEM) for service in Korea during the authorized operations period of 1 October 1966 to 30 June 1974, they are also eligible for the Korean Defense Service Medal as an exception to DoD policy.
Veterans can use Standard Form (SF) 180 to request the KDSM be added to their records. The Form is in PDF format and can be downloaded here at Standard Form 180. Within this form is all the information needed for submitting the form.
Cold War Recognition Certificate
In addition to the Korea Defense Service Medal, you would also be eligible to receive a Cold War Recognition Certificate
Eligibility requires that you must have been a U.S. government employee for a minimum of one day during the Cold War era from Sept. 2, 1945 through to Dec. 26, 1991.3 You must also prove that your service to the country was faithful and honorable. All military personnel, including National Guard and Reserve Soldiers, are eligible. Contractors and volunteers are not eligible. No medal has been authorized or issued for Cold War Recognition. The program is scheduled to run until the supply of certificates is exhausted. This award is only issued once. No replacement certificate will be issued.
For more information, veterans, regardless of Branch of Service, should go to United States Army Human Resources Command.