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“I am truly honored to receive this award as proof of a continued strong relationship between our two countries” says Captain Meyer.
Captain Jon Meyer awarded Legion of Merit Medal
U.S. Embassy - February 13, 2008
Today, we reaffirm the strong relation between
our two countries. The Secretary of Defense, the Honorable Robert Gates, has
awarded the Legion of Merit (Degree of Officer) to Captain Jon Meyer, Royal
Norwegian Navy, for his exemplary service as the Norwegian Naval Attaché to Washington DC from August 2003 to August 2007. Ambassador Benson K. Whitney presented the medal to Captain Meyer at the American embassy in Oslo today.
The Legion of Merit is awarded for
exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services
and achievements. This award is a testament to the bonds of trust Captain Meyer
created during his tenure as the Norwegian Naval Attaché to The United States.
He demonstrated exceptional abilities and diplomacy that furthered the causes
of our great Nations.
The decoration is issued to United States
military personnel as well as to military and political figures of foreign
governments. On July 20, 1942, an Act of Congress (Public Law 671 - 77th
Congress, Chapter 508, 2d Session) established the Legion of Merit and provided
that the medal "shall have suitable appurtenances and devices and not more
than four degrees, and which the President, under such rules and regulations as
he shall prescribe, may award to (a) personnel of the Armed Forces of the
United States and friendly foreign nations who, since the proclamation of an
emergency by the President on 8 September 1939, shall have distinguished
themselves by exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of
outstanding services." The Degree of Officer is normally awarded to flag
or general officers from those countries with which the United States
has exceptionally close relations.
