Medal of Honor recipient and Marine Sgt. Dakota Meyer endorsed Sen. Ted Cruz (R., Texas) for president on Tuesday. Meyer is the second youngest living Medal of Honor recipient and the first living Marine to be honored in 38 years .

Meyer said in a statement first reported by Independent Journal that Cruz was ready to lead the country.

"I am confident that Ted Cruz has the ability and resolve to be Commander-in-Chief. His record of standing up and fighting for what he believes in shows that he is not someone who buckles under pressure. Ted is ready to led this country—and I look forward to help uniting conservatives and veterans behind this campaign," Meyer said.

Cruz, who is coming off of a surprise victory in the Iowa caucus and a strong showing in the New Hampshire primary, accepted the endorsement in a statement, saying that Meyer is "a man of great courage and principle."

"We need to restore America’s leadership in the world at a time when Obama’s foreign policy has put America and it’s national security interests in jeopardy. I am honored to have Dakota’s support and have him as part of our team to help win the White House in 2016," Cruz's statement read.

Meyer was awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions in Afghanistan in September 2009. After learning that three Marines and a Navy corpsman were missing following an ambush by insurgents, Meyer entered an insurgent-held area under enemy fire and located the missing serviceman, who had been killed and stripped of their equipment. Meyer, aided by Afghan forces, moved the bodies to a safer area so that they could be extracted. During his search, Meyer evacuated 12 wounded allies and provided cover for another 24 Marines to escape.

Meyer’s endorsement of Cruz comes just days before the Republican primary in South Carolina.

Post has updated 2/17/16 at 12:44 pm.