Under the provisions of Department of Defense 1348.33-M, the Secretary of Defense of the United States of America takes pleasure in awarding the Defense Superior Service Medal to Colonel Robert Edwin Pater, United States Air Force, for exceptionally superior service to the Department of Defense as J5 in the Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, from 1973 to 1978. The distinctive accomplishments of Colonel Pater reflect great credit upon himself, the United States Air Force, and the Department of Defense.