DECEMBER 16, 2025 – President Donald J. Trump awarded a group of 13 soldiers and Marines with the recently established Mexican Border Defense Medal during a ceremony at the White House.
Established Aug. 13, 2025, via a memo signed by Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, the MBDM — which is backdated to Jan. 20 — recognizes service members who deployed as part of Joint Task Force Southern Border to the U.S.-Mexico border to provide military support for the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
“On Day 1 of my administration, I signed an executive order making it [the] core mission of the United States military to protect and defend the homeland, and today we’re here to honor our military men and women for their central role in the protection of our border,” Trump said prior to the presentation of the medals.
The president added that border security was an issue he placed a great deal of emphasis on during his most recent campaign for the presidency, and that the men and women of the military are doing an outstanding job of ensuring that security.
“They’re unbelievable; they make us all look good,” Trump said of the service members.
Hegseth spoke about the border mission’s importance earlier in the day while meeting with the awardees at the Pentagon.
“I think it’s really cool that the folks that we have here … get a chance to stand there with their commander in chief in front of the country, for this incredible mission, which started on Day 1 of this administration,” Hegseth told the group.
He went on to say that border security is a core mission related to defending the U.S. in its own hemisphere.
“It’s getting down to that border and getting control of it; and whether it’s hanging concertina wire and reinforcing fencing or patrolling … you guys have jumped at the mission, gotten after it, and I think it’s been six months of effectively zero crossings on the southern border, which [was] the goal,” he continued.
Hegseth also explained that the newly issued MBDM is an exact replica of the original Mexican Border Service Medal, which was created in 1918 and awarded to U.S. troops who fought against the paramilitary forces of Francisco “Pancho” Villa during the Mexican Revolution.
Many of the awardees — who, according to Hegseth, represent approximately 25,000 service members who currently qualify for the MBDM — said they felt honored to be recognized for their efforts on the border.
“It’s an absolute honor, you know, because I have a lot [of friends] out there [on the border] that do a lot of good on this mission, and to see that what we do is actually making an impact and seeing the result is absolutely astonishing; it’s awesome,” said Army Sgt. Jhonier Marin, a reservist assigned to the 808th Engineer Company who spent months patrolling the border near El Centro, California, and Eagle Pass, Texas.
“[The border mission] was very impactful. I feel what we’re doing [benefits] the country, and it feels good to see the benefit of the work that [the military] has done,” said Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Zeth Collins, who served as a welder and boom operator in support of JTF-SB.
“This is not a secondary mission. … This is the front [line] of the defense of this country. We’re taking it seriously [and] it starts with human beings,” Hegseth told the awardees.
“You’re on the front lines of locking it down for the American people; so, thank you for everything you’ve done,” he added.
Prior to the MBDM’s aforementioned revival, service members who served on the border were recognized with the Armed Forces Service Medal.
By Matthew Olay
Pentagon News