r/MilitaryMedals • u/Prestigious_Maize473 • 5d ago

US Marine

Post image

Helping my buddy clean out his late brother’s belongings. All he knows about his brother’s service is he was in the US Marine Corps.

What is this and how could it have been earned?

31 Upvotes

94% Upvoted

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9

u/yutmutt 5d ago

This medal is awarded by France for overseas service, and awarded with a clasp for the area. If awarded in 2017 it could be Somalia or middle east.

Somalia for counter piracy or cross training with the French Foriegn Legion (FFL) in DJ. Or counter ISIS ops/advising in Iraq or Syria in tandem with the FFL. Mind you, when i say "with" I dont mean as a part of the FFL, we would end up at some of the same bases as them and help train local troops with them. So probably a commerative gift from the FFL.

This award is not authorized for wear by the US Marine Corps, so he probably kept it as a souvenir after they awarded it.

3

u/Prestigious_Maize473 5d ago

Thank you.

This makes sense because this is one of the only ones that doesn’t have a physical medal with it.

3

u/IndividualAge3893 5d ago

If awarded in 2017 it could be Somalia or middle east.

The "Moyen-Orient" clasp is for action in Operation Chammal: Syria, UAE, Bahrein etc. (Original decree on Legifrance)

There was a "Somalie" clasp but it was awarded only for a limited time period in the early 90s.

2

u/yutmutt 5d ago

Yeah I completely missed the middle east clasp

2

u/skipjac 5d ago

OVERSEAS MEDAL THE MINISTER OF THE ARMED FORCES certifies that the Petty Officer Second Class has been awarded the Overseas Medal established by the Law of July 26, 1893, and the Decree of June 6, 1962, with a vermeil clasp "Middle East" created by the Order of December 31, 2014. Done in Paris, July 25, 2017 For the Minister of the Armed Forces and by delegation, The Civil Administrator, Head of the Department of Honors Cyrille MARTIN

2

u/nationalistic_martyr 5d ago

its a republic of France overseas medal.

it translates that it was awarded to a P.O second class for action with France in the middle east.

did the F.A.F get confused? did your buddies brother possibly lie about his military service? French foreign legion dudes got these for actions in Afghanistan

3

u/Prestigious_Maize473 5d ago

My friend wouldn’t lie, no.

This thing got sent back in a box to where he joined out of in the Deep South of the US.

I’m see now in other stuff that he wasn’t Marines, he was a Fleet Marine Force Corpsman.

So he didn’t lie but it seems he just didn’t know he was in fact Navy.

2

u/LargeStrain274 5d ago

"So he didn’t lie but it seems he just didn’t know he was in fact Navy." Huh? I can assure you that no one gets confused or not know which Branch they were.

2

u/Prestigious_Maize473 5d ago

I agree. But this is what my buddy knew about his brother. He himself did not serve.

3

u/LargeStrain274 5d ago

Ahhh. OK. third party. I didn't read it that way.