Prior to 2004, the MSM could only be awarded for peacetime service and could not be awarded in a combat zone, the MSM equivalent for those zones being the Bronze Star Medal (BSM). As in 1968 when the MSM was created, there were concerns that the prestige of the BSM was also slipping during combat operations in Southwest Asia that had essentially been continuous since 1990. In 2004, authority to award the MSM for combat zone service was authorized, retroactive to September 11, 2001.