US Troops On The Border Near El Paso Get New Medal

U. S. Troops serving along the border between Mexico and Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California will begin receiving a new medal in honor of their service.

Up until now, troops deployed along the border between the United States of America and Mexico received the Armed Forces Service Medal. Now, eligible troops assigned to support federal border agents along the border get the new "Border Defense Medal".

The new medal has pretty much the exact same look as the old one.

The original "Mexican Border Service Medal" was awarded to troops who served along the border in 1916 - 1917. The new "Border Defense Medal" looks just like it.

READ MORE: El Paso Sector Is The "Deadliest" On The Border

Eligible service members will receive the Mexican Border Defense Medal instead of the Armed Forces Service Medal, which had been awarded to troops supporting federal agents along the U.S.-Mexico border starting in 2019, according to the memo. Troops and veterans who have already received the Armed Forces Service Medal can apply with their military branches to receive the Mexican Border Defense Medal, but they cannot receive both medals for the same period of service, according to the memo. - stripes.com

Somewhere around 8,500 troops are currently on duty along the US southern border,  serving in 4 different military zones. The "area of eligibility" for this medal is:

U.S. land within 100 nautical miles from the international border with Mexico within Texas, including the city of San Antonio, as well as New Mexico, Arizona, California and the adjacent U.S. waters out to 24 nautical miles - defense.gov

The new medal is bronze with a yellow and green ribbon, you can see photo here.