Also known as a unit crest or DUI, a Distinctive Unit Insignia is worn by all Soldiers (except General Officers) in units that have been
authorized to be issued the device. It is worn centered on the shoulder loops of the Army Green Service Uniform (AGSU) and the blue Army Service Uniform (Enlisted only) with the base of the insignia toward the outside shoulder seam.
Enlisted personnel wear the insignia centered on the loop by placing it an equal distance from the outside shoulder seam to the outside edge of the shoulder-loop button. Officers (except Generals) wearing grade insignia on the shoulder loops center the DUI by placing it an equal distance between the inside edge of the grade insignia and the outside edge of the button.
Full guidance on wear of the DUI is found in DA Pamphlet 670-1,
Section 21-22, "Distinctive unit insignia" and 21–3(d) and (e),
"Beret" and
"Garrison Cap," respectively.
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This Distinctive Unit Insignia was originally approved on 20 March 2007 for U.S. Army Element, Combined Security Transition Command-Afghanistan. It was subsequently redesignated on 3 December 2008 for the U.S. Army Element, United States Forces-Afghanistan on 3 December 2008.
“Strength Through Partnership,” the motto of the U.S. Army Element, United States Forces-Afghanistan (USAE USF-A) displayed on its Distinctive Unit Insignia (DUI), reflects the importance the Army places on the coordination of strategy and tactics between it and the other Department of Defense branches in achieving ultimate success for Operation Enduring Freedom.
In the center of the USAE USF-A DUI, also called a unit crest is an ultramarine blue shield that alludes to the significance of that colors for Afghanis. It is the color of lapis lazuli, a precious gemstone that itself invokes the image of the blue skies of the region (its name translate as “sky stone” or “heaven stone”), and also recalls the desire for access to a coastline held by many Afghan natives.
Superimposed on the blue shield is a full-face rendering of a white snow leopard, an endangered species most commonly found in Eastern Afghanistan, surmounting the top and center of a weighing scale; the scale represents the nation’s pursuit of justice and reform of the rule of law. The shield is mounted upon a golden scroll with rolls featuring a black background found at the top and bottom containing the motto; black denotes the nation’s resolve to achieve justice and peace, while the white of the snow leopard is a reference to integrity, pure motives, and high ideals.