Vietnam Service Medal The Vietnam Service Medal ( VSM ) is a award of the United States Armed Forces established in 1965 by order of President Lyndon B . Johnson . The distinctive design has been attributed to both sculptor Thomas Hudson Jones , a former employee of the Army Institute of Heraldry . and Mercedes Lee . The medal is issued to recognize military service during the Vietnam War and is authorized to service members in every branch of the U . S . Armed Forces , provided they meet the qualification criteria in United States Department of Defense regulation DoD 1348 . Criteria . The Vietnam Service Medal is presented to any service member who served on temporary duty for more than 30 consecutive days , or 60 non - consecutive days , attached to or regularly serving for one , or more , days with an organization participating in or directly supporting ground ( military ) operations or attached to or regularly serving for one , or more , days aboard a naval vessel directly supporting military operations in the Republic of Vietnam , Thailand , Cambodia , Laos within the defined combat zone ( DoD 1348 C6 . 6 . 1 . 1 . 5 . revised September 1996 ) between the dates of 15 November 1961 and 28 March 1973 , and from 29 April 1975 to 30 April 1975 . For the United States Navy , vessels operating in Vietnamese waters qualify for the Vietnam Service Medal provided that the naval vessel was engaged in direct support of Vietnam combat operations . The United States Air Force also grants the Vietnam Service Medal exclusively to flight crews that flew missions over Vietnamese air space , even if the home base of the flight mission was hundreds of miles away requiring in flight refueling . The Vietnam Service Medal is retroactive to 1961 and supersedes and replaces the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal ( AFEM ) which was issued for Vietnam service prior to 1965 . Defense Department regulations do not permit the simultaneous presentation of both the Vietnam Service Medal , and the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal , for the same period of service in Vietnam , however the AFEM may be exchanged for the VSM upon request from a service member . Veterans of the Vietnam War may exchange the AFEM for the VSM and have military records updated to reflect the difference by contacting the National Personnel Records Center , which is the current agency that provides record corrections reflecting an AFEM upgrade to the Vietnam Service Medal . [ 1 ] The Republic of Vietnam also issued its own campaign medal for the Vietnam War , known as the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal . This is a separate foreign award from the Vietnam Service Medal which was accepted by the U . S . Congress and the U . S . Military in accordance with DoD 1348 C7 . Six months of service in support of military operations in the Republic of Vietnam was the normal requirement for the award . Appearance . The Vietnam Service Medal is issued as a bronze medal , 1 - 1 / 4 inches in diameter . The obverse side consists of an oriental dragon behind a grove of bamboo trees , representing the subversive nature of the conflict , are above the inscription " REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM SERVICE " . On the reverse , a crossbow , the ancient weapon of Vietnam , and the torch of the Statue of Liberty , a symbol of the United States devotion to liberty and freedom , are above the arched inscription " UNITED STATES OF AMERICA " . The ribbon is 1 - 3 / 8 inches wide and consists of the following stripes : three narrow ( 1 / 16 inch ) strips of red with wider ( 5 / 32 inch ) stripes of yellow in the center , flanked by even wider ( 5 / 16 inch ) stripes of yellow on each side and narrow 1 / 8 - inch stripes of primitive green on the ends . The yellow with red stripes suggests the flag of the Republic of Vietnam The green alludes to the jungle in Vietnam . Devices such as campaign stars , arrowhead device and the FMF combat operation insignia may be authorized . Campaigns . The Department of Defense established thirty military campaigns during the Vietnam War which covered all services . For those service members participating in one or more campaigns , a 3 / 16 - inch service star ( formerly a " campaign star " or " engagement star " ) is authorized to be attached to the Vietnam Service Medal suspension and service ribbon to indicate participation in each campaign . Silver campaign stars are issued in lieu of five bronze campaign stars . The arrowhead device is authorized for campaign participation which involved an aerial or amphibious assault . The Fleet Marine Force ( FMF ) combat operation insignia is also authorized for certain Navy personnel . In 2010 the Department of Defense consolidated the original list of campaigns from the original 30 to a list of 18 by combining the Air Force campaign list with the other armed services . The United States Army , and Coast Guard recognize 17 campaign stars ( 3 silver and 2 bronze campaign stars ) on the Vietnam Service campaign streamer . Additionally , the United States Marine Corps , Navy and Air Force recognize Operation Frequent Wind .