Green beret
When visiting the Special Forces at Fort Bragg on 12 October 1961, President John F. Kennedy asked Brigadier General William P. Yarborough to make sure that the men under his command wore green berets for the visit. Later that day, Kennedy sent a memorandum which included the line: "I am sure that the green beret will be a mark of distinction in the trying times ahead". By America's entry into the Vietnam War, the green beret had become a symbol of excellence throughout the US Army. On April 11, 1962 in a White House memorandum to the United States Army, President Kennedy reiterated his view: "The green beret is a symbol of excellence, a badge of courage, a mark of distinction in the fight for freedom". To no avail, both Yarborough and Edson Raff had previously petitioned the Pentagon to allow wearing of the green beret. The President, however, did not fail them.
Military beret
Berets in Gabonese Army:The German "Heer" uses berets with different badges for every branch of service. The "Luftwaffe" and the "Marine" issue dark blue berets only to their ground or land combat units (called "Luftwaffensicherungstruppe" and "Marineschutzkräfte") respectively. Berets are usually worn at special ceremonies and roll calls, although units with a special "esprit de corps", especially armoured and mechanized infantry ("Panzergrenadiere") battalions, wear their berets all the time. German berets are always pulled to the right, with the badge visible over the left temple.