New medals for servicemen! Government approves the new decoration rules in the Armed Forces

The Council of Ministers, on the proposal of the Minister of Defense and in support of the law “On decorations in the Republic of Albania”, has approved the decision on the creation of special medals, signs and badges of honour in the Armed Forces (FARSH).

The decision defines the hierarchy of awards, the professional criteria, the official procedures and the authorities responsible for decorating active servicemen, those in reserve or retired, civilian personnel, as well as foreign servicemen who contribute to Albania’s security.

Types of medals and award criteria

The new decision regulates in detail the range of military medals, the highest of which is the “Medal of High Values”, awarded by the Minister of Defense for extraordinary contributions in the interest of national defence.

The new framework also includes the Medal “For Distinguished Services”, the “FARSH Medal of Honour”, as well as the “Rescuer” Medal, the latter dedicated to acts of courage and humanism in defence of citizens’ lives during emergency situations.

The award system is also enriched with special medals for those injured on duty:

Medal “Maimed in war / service”

Medal “Wounded in war / service”

“Medal of appreciation in service” (awarded for every 10 years of uninterrupted service)

Medals of honour by service branch and command (Land Force, Naval Force, Air Force, Cyber Force, etc.)

“The awarding of special medals, signs and badges of honour is based on the principles of gratitude, appreciation of contribution, meritocracy, objectivity, responsibility, transparency, proportionality and international reciprocity,” the decision states.

Competition badges and qualification signs

In addition to medals, the decision integrates into the uniform the badges of annual merit and of sports or military competitions, such as “Non-commissioned officer of the year”, “Soldier/Sailor of the year”, “Distinguished Marksman” and “Student/Cadet of the year”.

Professional qualification signs in textile or metal form have also been made official for specific military profiles:

Special and Operational Forces: the “Special Operator”, “Commando”, “Sniper”, “Paratrooper” and “Explosive Ordnance Disposal Specialist” signs.

Air Force: signs for Pilots (including the “Senior” and “Expert” levels according to flight hours) and “Flight technician”.

Naval Force: the “Sailor”, “Diver”, “Special diver” and “Special operations diver” signs.

Specialised sectors: expert signs in the cyber field, the military medical service and academic titles (“Doctor” / “Professor”).

Authorities and loss of the right to wear

The decision clearly divides the competences for awarding decorations. The Minister of Defense and the Chief of the General Staff retain the right to award the main medals, while the commanders of forces, support structures and units/battalions will award the badges and medals of the respective levels. All decorations will be presented at official protocol ceremonies.

The decision also provides for cases of removal of decorations.

“Beneficiaries lose the right to wear/use them, by order of the authority that awarded them, if a final court decision is established or they have been declared an ‘undesirable person’,” the document specifies.

Finally, this decision repeals the previous 2016 decisions in this field, while medals awarded earlier will continue to be fully recognised.