On August 13, 2025, the Pentagon quietly unveiled a new military honor: the Mexican Border Defense Medal. This fresh decoration, confirmed by both Task & Purpose and Military Times, is designed to recognize the thousands of U.S. service members deployed to the southern border since January 20, 2025, in support of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The announcement arrives amidst a flurry of new border security initiatives, including the construction of reinforced barriers and the establishment of new national defense areas along the U.S.-Mexico divide.
According to a Defense Department memo that surfaced on social media—and whose authenticity was verified by Pentagon officials—the Mexican Border Defense Medal (MBDM) is now awarded to troops who have been “permanently assigned, attached, or detailed” to a unit deploying as part of a designated Defense Department operation supporting CBP for at least 30 consecutive or nonconsecutive days. The deployment must occur within 100 nautical miles of the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas (including San Antonio), New Mexico, Arizona, or California, or in U.S. waters up to 24 nautical miles from the border, as detailed by Task & Purpose.
“Effective immediately, the Mexican Border Defense Medal (MBDM), is hereby established to recognize Service members deployed to the U.S. international border with Mexico for DoD support to United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP),” the memo, first uploaded to a Navy subreddit, reads. This means that eligible service members will now receive the MBDM instead of the Armed Forces Service Medal, which had been awarded for similar service since 2019. However, troops and veterans who already received the Armed Forces Service Medal can apply to have it swapped for the new medal—but not for the same period of service.
The medal’s order of precedence is set: it will be worn before the Armed Forces Service Medal and after the Korea Defense Service Medal, according to the memo. While the Pentagon has yet to release images or details about the medal’s design, its symbolic value is already resonating among service members and their families.
This move follows a significant policy shift. On his first day back in office, January 20, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order declaring a national emergency at the southern border. The order directed the Defense Department to assist the Department of Homeland Security with border security, representing a renewed federal push to curb what the administration called “unlawful mass migration.” As Military Times reported, the administration has since ramped up its border security mission, deploying thousands of military personnel and launching new initiatives to stem the flow of migrants and illicit drugs.
Currently, roughly 7,500 U.S. service members are stationed at the southern border, including about 1,500 National Guard troops on federal orders, according to U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM). The number of military personnel attached to the mission has fluctuated, with Military Times noting that as of July 2, 2025, approximately 8,500 troops were part of the Joint Task Force-Southern Border, a new entity established by NORTHCOM on March 14, 2025, to coordinate immigration enforcement efforts across the region.
The military’s role at the border isn’t limited to manpower. The Pentagon has also established four “national defense areas” along the U.S.-Mexico border. In these zones, U.S. troops are authorized to temporarily detain trespassers until they can be handed over to federal law enforcement officers. These areas, including the recently established Yuma National Defense Area in Arizona, are designed to bolster security in regions long plagued by illegal cross-border activity.
One of the most visible operations is unfolding in Arizona’s Yuma Sector. There, a task force of 500 U.S. Marines and sailors—dubbed Task Force Forge—has taken up the challenge of constructing new fortifications at the border. According to Task & Purpose, Task Force Forge is composed of personnel from Combat Logistics Battalion 15, 1st Marine Logistics Group, I Marine Expeditionary Force. Their mission: reinforce existing barriers with barbed and concertina wire, supported by prefabricated steel brackets, and conduct road and terrain surveys to improve border security infrastructure.
“Reinforcing the border barrier is a tangible way we assist our interagency partners to strengthen security and protect the territorial integrity of the United States,” Marine Corps Lt. Col. Colin Graham, CLB 15 battalion commander and Task Force Forge commanding officer, said in a Pentagon release. The Yuma Sector, monitored by Border Patrol agents, covers 126 miles of the border from Arizona to California and has long been a hotspot for smuggling and unauthorized crossings.
Task Force Forge assumed its duties in July 2025, taking over from the outgoing Task Force Sapper, which had laid the groundwork for barrier reinforcement. The Marines and sailors have since completed detailed surveys of the border barriers and are now hard at work strengthening them. Their efforts are concentrated within the Yuma National Defense Area, an extension of Marine Corps Air Station Yuma and a key part of the administration’s broader border security plan.
Meanwhile, the Pentagon has reallocated significant resources to fortify the border. In July 2025, $200 million was shifted from Army, Navy, Air Force, and Defense Department programs to replace a 12-foot-tall mesh barrier with a 30-foot-tall permanent protective barrier at the Barry M. Goldwater Range in Arizona. This bombing range has long been a corridor for illegal cross-border smuggling, making it a focal point for new security measures.
The military’s involvement goes beyond border fortifications. The U.S. Navy has been deployed to intercept and halt the flow of illicit drugs into the country. On August 11, 2025, the guided missile destroyer Sampson, working alongside the U.S. Coast Guard, intercepted 1,296 pounds of cocaine from a drug-smuggling vessel, as reported by Military Times. This maritime operation highlights the multi-pronged approach the administration is taking to address security threats along and adjacent to the border.
The Mexican Border Defense Medal is not the first of its kind. Historically, the U.S. military has issued similar awards for service along the southern border. The Mexico Service Medal, created in 1917, honored troops who took part in operations along the border or in Mexico between 1911 and 1917, including the campaigns against Pancho Villa. Another, the Mexico Border Service Medal, was established by Congress in 1918 for those who supported these operations from the U.S. side of the border. These historical precedents lend the new medal a sense of continuity, connecting today’s efforts to a long legacy of border security missions.
As the administration’s border security strategy continues to evolve, the Mexican Border Defense Medal stands as a tangible symbol of the military’s role in these contentious operations. For service members on the ground, it’s a recognition of their unique mission—one that blends tradition, politics, and the ever-shifting realities of America’s southern frontier.
