Item: i112856

Authentic Medal of:

United States of America
39th Security Police – Gulf War – Operation Provide Comfort  – US Show Piece Challenge Coin
Bronze Show Piece Medal 40mm (25.68 grams)
THROUGH STRENGTH PEACE * 39th SECURITY POLICE, Eagle flying left with sword in claws pointed in line, within circle.
OPERATION *** PROVIDE COMFORT *** COMBINED TASK FORCE, Care packages landing, moon and crescent upper left, within circle, four segments with inscriptions around.

You are bidding on the exact item pictured, provided with a Certificate of Authenticity and Lifetime Guarantee of Authenticity.

Operation Provide Comfort and Provide Comfort II were military operations initiated by the United States and other Coalition nations of the Persian Gulf War, starting in April 1991, to defend Kurdish refugees fleeing their homes in northern Iraq in the aftermath of the Gulf War, and to deliver humanitarian aid to them. The no-fly zone instituted to help bring this about would become one of the main factors allowing the development of the autonomous Kurdistan Region.

“Operation Haven” (the UK’s name for the operation) was a UK-headed initiative, made at a time when the US was fundamentally uninterested in any further taking of action in the Persian Gulf region. The UK prime minister’s lobbying of other European states resulted in NATO’s support, leveraging the necessary US air support. Then as Saddam Hussein’s retributive activities intensified, US ground and logistic support was also achieved. This was a distinctly UK-headed operation though, with a proposed force of 6,000 personnel, spearheaded by the 3 Commando Brigade, Royal Marines, with elements from the UK’s army, the Royal Air Force, and other coalition member states. It was deemed dramatically successful, even though it appeared to be risky given the climate of those times. Operation Haven literally “invaded” Iraq. The Coalition’s main task was to enter northern Iraq, clear the designated area of any Iraqi threat and establish a safe environment for the Kurdish refugees to return to their homes. The mission was both a military one and humanitarian as once security had been established, the US would provide air support and specialist elements along with other Coalition members, supply and rebuilding of infrastructure would then be initiated. The ground mission within Iraq took 58 days to complete. Operation Provide Comfort (i.e. Haven) officially ended on 24 July 1991, shortly after the enforcement of the “No Fly Zone” continued to ensure Kurdish security in the region.

The United States of America (USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country composed of 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions. At 3.8 million square miles (9.8 million km²), the United States is the world’s third or fourth largest country by total area and is slightly smaller than the entire continent of Europe’s 3.9 million square miles (10.1 million km²). With a population of over 327 million people, the U.S. is the third most populous country. The capital is Washington, D.C., and the largest city by population is New York. Forty-eight states and the capital’s federal district are contiguous in North America between Canada and Mexico. The State of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east and across the Bering Strait from Russia to the west. The State of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U.S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, stretching across nine official time zones. The extremely diverse geography, climate, and wildlife of the United States make it one of the world’s 17 megadiverse countries.

Paleo-Indians migrated from Siberia to the North American mainland at least 12,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century. The United States emerged from the thirteen British colonies established along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the colonies following the French and Indian War led to the American Revolution, which began in 1775, and the subsequent Declaration of Independence in 1776. The war ended in 1783 with the United States becoming the first country to gain independence from a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, with the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, being ratified in 1791 to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. The United States embarked on a vigorous expansion across North America throughout the 19th century, acquiring new territories, displacing Native American tribes, and gradually admitting new states until it spanned the continent by 1848.

During the second half of the 19th century, the Civil War led to the abolition of slavery. By the end of the century, the United States had extended into the Pacific Ocean, and its economy, driven in large part by the Industrial Revolution, began to soar. The Spanish-American War and World War I confirmed the country’s status as a global military power. The United States emerged from World War II as a global superpower, the first country to develop nuclear weapons, the only country to use them in warfare, and a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council. During the Cold War, the United States and the Soviet Union competed in the Space Race, culminating with the 1969 Moon landing. The end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the world’s sole superpower.

The United States is the world’s oldest surviving federation. It is a federal republic and a representative democracy, “in which majority rule is tempered by minority rights protected by law”. The United States is a founding member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States (OAS), and other international organizations. The United States is a highly developed country, with the world’s largest economy by nominal GDP and second-largest economy by PPP, accounting for approximately a quarter of global GDP. The U.S. economy is largely post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge-based activities, although the manufacturing sector remains the second-largest in the world. The United States is the world’s largest importer and the second largest exporter of goods, by value. Although its population is only 4.3% of the world total, the U.S. holds 33% of the total wealth in the world, the largest share of global wealth concentrated in a single country. It also suffers from growing levels of income inequality and wealth inequality.

The United States ranks among the highest nations in several measures of socioeconomic performance, including human development, per capita GDP, and productivity per person. The United States is the foremost military power in the world, making up a third of global military spending, and is a leading political, cultural, and scientific force internationally.