In 1998, Congress directed the Secretary of Defense to establish a certificate to honor United States Armed Forces members as well as eligible civilians who contributed honorably to the Cold War effort between September 2, 1945 and December 26, 1991. Those who received the Cold War Recognition Certificate may wish to accompany it with a medal and ribbon, though as an independently created award it is not eligible for wear on military uniforms.
The Alaska National Guard Cold War Victory Ribbon is the Alaska National Guard version of the Cold War Victory Medal and is issued in ribbon form only.
The Alaska National Guard is made up of the Alaska Army National Guard and the Alaska Air National Guard. The Army component, based in Fort Richardson, was established in 1940 and numbers approximately 2,000. The Air component, based in Anchorage and numbering approximately 2,300, was formed in 1952 with the 8144th Air Base Squadron.
The ribbon is bisected by a thin red vertical stripe flanked by thinner yellow stripes. Proceeding outward on each side are stripes of black, green, thinner yellow, thick white, and yellow.