The Medal for Defence Operations Abroad () is a

military medal The Military Medal (MM) was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the British Army and other arms of the British Armed Forces, armed forces, and to personnel of other Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, below commissioned o ...

of Norway. Established 1 April 2005, the medal currently recognises 30 days of service abroad in a designated operational area with the

Norwegian Armed Forces The Norwegian Armed Forces () are the armed forces responsible for the defence of Norway. It consists of five branches, the Norwegian Army, the Royal Norwegian Navy, which includes the Norwegian Coast Guard, Coast Guard, the Royal Norwegian Air ...

. Participation as part of an international military staff is also creditable, so long as the service is in the area of operations.

Criteria

Upon its establishment on 1 April 2005, the Medal for Defence Operations Abroad was awarded for 90 days service in an overseas military operation as designated by the

Chief of Defence A chief of defence (or head of defence) is the highest ranked Officer (armed forces), commissioned officer of a nation's armed forces. The acronym CHOD is in common use within NATO and the European Union as a generic term for the highest national ...

. After 1 April 2011, personnel are eligible for award of the medal after 30 days of service, instead of the previous 90 days. This change in length of required service had no retroactive effect on eligibility for the Medal for Defence Operations Abroad. Personnel typically serve with a Norwegian Armed Forces unit to be eligible for this medal. Norwegian personnel who serve on a multinational staff, as part of the operation, are also eligible as long as the service was performed in the area of operations. Personnel who are wounded without completing the specified length of service may be awarded the medal. Foreign personnel who serve with Norwegian units are also eligible for award of the Medal for Defence Operations Abroad.

Appearance

The Medal for Defence Operations Abroad is round made of a bronze colored metal with a matte finish. The

obverse The obverse and reverse are the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags, seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, ''obverse'' ...

of the medal bears the

Coat of Arms of Norway The coat of arms of Norway is the arms of dominion of King Harald V of Norway, and as such represents both the monarch and the Norway, kingdom (nation and the state). It depicts a standing Or (heraldry), golden lion (heraldry), lion on a Gules, r ...

superimposed over a sword. On either side of the sword's

hilt The hilt (rarely called a haft or shaft) is the handle of a knife, dagger, sword, or bayonet, consisting of a guard, grip, and pommel. The guard may contain a crossguard or quillons. A tassel or sword knot may be attached to the guard or pomme ...

are the words ''SEMPER PARATUS'' (Always prepared). The reverse depicts an 8-point

compass rose A compass rose or compass star, sometimes called a wind rose or rose of the winds, is a polar coordinates, polar diagram displaying the orientation of the cardinal directions (north, east, south, and west) and their points of the compass, inter ...

. This design is used for all versions of the medal, with the suspension and

service ribbon A medal ribbon, service ribbon or ribbon bar is a small ribbon, mounted on a small metal bar equipped with an attaching device, which is generally issued for wear in place of a medal when it is not appropriate to wear the actual medal. Each cou ...

s varying for service in different countries and operations. Roman numerals are attached to the ribbon to indicate multiple awards of the same medal.

Ribbons

The ribbons of the medal are typically representative of the country where service was performed. The edges of each ribbon are the same, with the colors taken from the

Flag of Norway The national flag of Norway (; ; ) is red with a navy blue Scandinavian cross bordered in white that extends to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style of the ''Dannebrog'', the flag of De ...

. The colors in the center often come from the colors in the flags of the countries where operations took place. When more than one medal representing service in multiple areas is worn, the medals and ribbons are worn by date of Norway's military involvement in the operation.

References

{{reflist Military awards and decorations of Norway Awards established in 2005 2005 establishments in Norway