ENGLAND: Honorary Knight Commander... Most Excellent Order of the British Empire

Honorary Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire

Her Majesty The Queen of England, appointed General Wesley K Clark, United States Army, as an Honorary Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. Defense Secretary Hoon, acting for Queen Elizabeth, conferred the insignia to General Clark in March 2000, praising him for his leadership of the peacekeeping forces in Bosnia and Kosovo.

The award is in recognition of General Clark's key role as NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Europe, particularly with respect to his direction of the multinational peacekeeping forces in the Balkans.

As stated in information supplied by the British Ministry of Defense:

“General Clark brought his boundless energy and imagination to bear in devising new ways of applying his forces and during the Kosovo operation the Alliance achieved success without loss.

General Clark was ever mindful of those in the front line and was as careful as he was with his own nation's forces not to risk British forces unnecessarily.

General Clark, an armored corps officer, has commanded at every level, from Company to Division and including major training centers in the United States. He led the military negotiations for the Bosnian Peace Accord at Dayton and before his appointment as SACEUR, commanded the US Southern Command in Panama.”

The bestowal of this award is a relatively rare honour. Since 1990, only seven honorary knighthoods have been awarded to foreign military personnel. General Clark is one of a few foreign military personnel to receive a British honorary knighthood. Others include General Colin Powell and General Norman Schwarzkopf.

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