Dave Danner Posted November 16, 2006 Share Posted November 16, 2006 Well, the medals in question are U.S., so I guess this is the right forum, though some might be more interested in the Ukrainian stuff in the pictures to follow.Ukraine Army officers receive U.S. medals for peace keeping operations Release Date: Nov 08, 2006By Navy Lt. Corey BarkerEuropean Command public affairsKIEV, Ukraine ? Four officers from the Ukraine Army were awarded the Army Commendation Medal for exceptionally meritorious service in support of Multinational Force Iraq in Operation Iraqi Freedom by European Command Deputy Director, Army Gen. William E. ?Kip? Ward during a ceremony here Nov 6, 2006. Ward presented the medals to the recipients after a formal military pass and review ceremony in front of the Ministry of Defense headquarters building. ?These four soldiers are being recognized for excellence and professionalism while serving in Iraq and they are a clear indicator of the high level of Ukraine?s commitment to global peace keeping operations,? stated Ward.Ukraine Army Soldiers have deployed to Iraq since August 2003 to conduct coalition peace keeping operations.The four officers recognized are Ukraine Army Captain Igor Komarov, Lt Col. Volodymyr Khokhlenko, Maj. Sergey Ushakov, and Maj. Sergey Kondratiuk.?It is a privilege to personally recognize their achievements and convey my appreciation for Ukraine?s contribution to global peace and security?, Ward said.http://www.eucom.mil/english/FullStory.asp?art=1200Image: http://www.eucom.mil/english/file.asp?HR=2...=20061108104246 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Danner Posted November 16, 2006 Author Share Posted November 16, 2006 The EUCOM article IDs them as "Ukraine Army Captain Igor Komarov, Lt Col. Volodymyr Khokhlenko, Maj. Sergey Ushakov, and Maj. Sergey Kondratiuk." The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense article IDs them as "підполковникам Володимиру Хохленку, Сергію Ушакову, Сергію Кондратюку та майору Ігорю Комарову" or Lt. Colonels Volodymyr Khokhlenko, Serhiy Ushakov, Serhiy Kondratiuk and Major Ihor Komarov. However, as can be seen by the attached photo, one of the recipients is a Captain 3rd Class in the Ukrainian Navy. Captain 3rd Class is equivalent to a major, so I suspect this might be Komarov. Also, maybe he's a marine; I have no idea if Ukrainian naval infantry might use navy uniforms but army rank titles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Danner Posted November 16, 2006 Author Share Posted November 16, 2006 The four recipients, plus General Ward, the Ukrainian Armed Forces Chief Colonel General Serhiy Kirilenko and someone else (US Ambassador?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Danner Posted November 16, 2006 Author Share Posted November 16, 2006 More photos: http://www.mil.gov.ua/index.php?lang=ua&am...hiv&sid=511 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Danner Posted November 16, 2006 Author Share Posted November 16, 2006 By the way, how often do you think thoughts strayed from the solemnity of the occasion to the pair of legs encased in those stockings? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stogieman Posted November 16, 2006 Share Posted November 16, 2006 I would think we would be rather embarassed to allow another country's soldiers to receive the rather poorly packaged, poor quality US medals of the current manufacturer...So much for "Lowest Bidder" purchasing... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Darrell Posted November 16, 2006 Share Posted November 16, 2006 (edited) I wondered how they attached those to the awardees uniform. It would take forever to pop that little pin out and reclasp it A simple paper clip Edited November 16, 2006 by Darrell Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed_Haynes Posted November 16, 2006 Share Posted November 16, 2006 Oh . . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IMPERIAL QUEST Posted November 16, 2006 Share Posted November 16, 2006 I wondered how they attached those to the awardees uniform. It would take forever to pop that little pin out and reclasp it A simple paper clip Congrats to these men for being recognized for their efforts.On a side note...I can say from personal experience that it is terribly disappointing to stand at attention, and receive a weakly struck decoration from a three star.........with a binder clip attached. Sort of "tarnishes" the moment Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Danner Posted November 16, 2006 Author Share Posted November 16, 2006 I would think we would be rather embarassed to allow another country's soldiers to receive the rather poorly packaged, poor quality US medals of the current manufacturer...So much for "Lowest Bidder" purchasing...It is an embarassment. Talking with Jeff Floyd recently, he indicated that the new head of the Army's Institute of Heraldry intends to do something about improving the design, but it is the budget gurus who decide on the lowest bidder purchase process.It is even more scandalous when you go to a show like SOS and see hundreds of mint-in-box higher quality WW2-produced medals which were sold out of warehouses by DOD - Silver Stars, Bronze Stars, Purple Hearts, etc. - while soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan are being given the newly manufactured junk pieces.As for the Ukrainians, I suppose there is some consolation in that many current Ukrainian medals are also of rather poor quality lowest bidder manufacture as well. And the Polish-issued Multinational Division Central-South Commemorative Medal (Medal pamiatkowy Wielonarodowej Dywizji Centrum-Poludnie) which can be seen on the Ukrainian officers, is not the highest quality medal either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Danner Posted November 16, 2006 Author Share Posted November 16, 2006 Congrats to these men for being recognized for their efforts.On a side note...I can say from personal experience that it is terribly disappointing to stand at attention, and receive a weakly struck decoration from a three star.........with a binder clip attached. Sort of "tarnishes" the moment I received my last ARCOM in the mail. Certificate folder and medal case stuffed in a padded envelope. I got an AAM in the mail, too, but I expected that, since the unit that had awarded it had deactivated by the time the award was processed and my former commander had to take care of it from his new duty station while I was in OCS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David S Posted November 17, 2006 Share Posted November 17, 2006 (edited) By the way, how often do you think thoughts strayed from the solemnity of the occasion to the pair of legs encased in those stockings?My thoughts exactly ! Nice looking as well.We called the ARCOM the " Green Weenie" Edited November 17, 2006 by David S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rick Research Posted November 17, 2006 Share Posted November 17, 2006 I thought at this rank level Legions of Merit (enamel anyway) were handed out. I always thought these Commendation Medals were for NCOs? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Danner Posted November 17, 2006 Author Share Posted November 17, 2006 I think a Legion of Merit would be more likely for a foreign colonel/captain or higher, and only in certain cases a lt. colonel/commander. ARCOMs are not NCO-only awards; they are the most common awards for company-grade officers (captains and lieutenants) and junior to mid-level NCOs. These guys are perhaps paying a price for things outside their control. The next level award down from the LoM isn't the ARCOM. It is the MSM, at least in peacetime. In wartime, it is the Bronze Star Medal without "V". OIF is considered a wartime theater, so a Bronze Star for achievement might have been recommended, but Ukraine's participation in OIF was as a peacekeeping force, not a warfighter (Ukraine and New Zealand were the only two countries not part of the "coalition of the willing" to contribute troops to the occupation and reconstruction of Iraq in response to Security Council Resolution 1483 of May 2003; Armenia and a few others came later).So they might have had recommendations for BSMs that got downgraded to ARCOMs, rather than converted to MSMs. It also might just be practice to award ARCOMs in these cases. Here is an article on two Swedish lieutenants receiving ARCOMs for service in Afghanistan: http://www.mil.se/int/index.php?c=news&id=34416 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Danner Posted November 17, 2006 Author Share Posted November 17, 2006 An eclectic mix:New Zealand PRT members decorated for service in Afghanistan with a mix of Bronze Stars and ARCOMs at various ranks: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/print.cf...jectid=10406248Bronze Star Medal to a Norwegian air force brigadier for OEF in Afghanistan: http://www.mil.no/luft/start/nyheter/artic...articleID=88509Three Danish captains decorated with ARCOMs for service in Iraq: http://forsvaret.dk/HOK/Nyt+og+Presse/Nyhe...mendation+Medal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NavyFCO Posted November 18, 2006 Share Posted November 18, 2006 Well, I'm glad to see that awards are presented in the same manner across the board... all of the awards I've received have also been pinned on with binder clips as well. What I always thought was embarassing though was being asked for the award back after the ceremony so I could get the one in the box "at a later time...." Now if that ain't insulting, I don't know what is........ DaveP.S. Yeah, I do think the picture in post #5 is by far the most....interesting.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Danner Posted November 18, 2006 Author Share Posted November 18, 2006 P.S. Yeah, I do think the picture in post #5 is by far the most....interesting.... Ukrainians do know what to look for in a soldier these days... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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