| Chief of the Defence Staff | |
|---|---|
| Lithuanian Armed Forces | |
| Member of | Defence Staff |
| Reports to | Chief of Defence |
| Formation | 23 November 1918 |
| First holder | Jurgis Kubilius |
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| Lithuanian Armed Forces |
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Chief of the Defence Staff is the head of the Lithuanian Defence Staff responsible for the administrative, operational, and logistical needs of the Lithuanian Armed Forces.
| No. | Portrait | Chief of the General Staff | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colonel (pulkininkas) Jurgis Kubilius (1875–1961) | 23 November 1918 | 24 December 1918 | 30 days | [1] | |
| 2 | Karininkas Pranas Liatukas (1876–1945) | 24 December 1918 | 4 March 1919 | 70 days | [1] | |
| Karininkas Edvardas Adamkavičius (1888–1957) Acting | 4 March 1919 | 26 March 1919 | 22 days | [1] | ||
| 3 | General Silvestras Žukauskas (1860–1937) | 26 April 1919 | 27 May 1919 | 31 days | [1] | |
| 4 | Karininkas Mykolas Velykis (1884–1955) | 26 May 1919 | 7 October 1919 | 131 days | [1] | |
| 5 | Lieutenant General Stasys Nastopka (1881–1939) | 7 October 1919 | 13 July 1920 | 280 days | [1] | |
| 6 | Lieutenant General Maksimas Katche (1879–1933) | 13 July 1920 | 21 August 1920 | 39 days | [1] | |
| Major Adolfas Birontas (1885–1958) Acting | 21 August 1920 | 23 August 1920 | 2 days | [1] | ||
| 7 | Colonel Konstantinas Kleščinskis (1879–1927) | 23 August 1920 | 13 April 1921 | 233 days | [1] | |
| 8 | Lieutenant General Maksimas Katche (1879–1933) | 13 April 1921 | 7 October 1922 | 1 year, 177 days | [1] | |
| Major Jonas Gricius (1884–1963) Acting | 7 October 1922 | 6 November 1923 | 1 year, 30 days | [1] | ||
| 9 | General Leonas Radus-Zenkavičius (1874–1946) | 6 November 1923 | 29 February 1924 | 115 days | [1] | |
| Lieutenant colonel Jonas Gricius (1884–1963) Acting | 29 February 1924 | 7 May 1925 | 1 year, 68 days | [1] | ||
| 10 | Colonel of the General Staff Kazys Ladiga (1893–1941) | 7 May 1925 | 16 September 1925 | 132 days | [1] | |
| Lieutenant colonel Jonas Gricius (1884–1963) Acting | 16 September 1925 | 19 October 1925 | 33 days | [1] | ||
| 11 | Lieutenant general Kazys Ladiga (1893–1941) | 19 October 1925 | 22 June 1926 | 246 days | [1] | |
| 12 | Lieutenant colonel of the General Staff Kazys Škirpa (1895–1979) | 22 June 1926 | 24 December 1926 | 185 days | [1] | |
| 13 | Colonel Teodoras Daukantas (1884–1960) | 24 December 1926 | 11 August 1927 | 230 days | [1] | |
| 14 | Colonel of the General Staff Povilas Plechavičius (1890–1973) | 11 August 1927 | 10 February 1929 | 1 year, 183 days | [1] | |
| 15 | Lieutenant general Petras Kubiliūnas (1894–1946) | 10 February 1929 | 7 June 1934 | 5 years, 117 days | [1] | |
| 16 | Lieutenant general Jonas Jackus (1894–1977) | 7 June 1934 | 21 September 1934 | 106 days | [1] | |
| 17 | Lieutenant colonel of the General Staff Stasys Raštikis (1896–1985) | 21 September 1934 | 1 January 1935 | 102 days | [1] | |
| 18 | Colonel of the General Staff Jonas Černius (1898–1977) | 1 January 1935 | 30 March 1939 | 4 years, 88 days | [1] | |
| 19 | Divisional general Stasys Pundzevičius (1893–1980) | 1 April 1939 | 15 June 1940 | 1 year, 75 days | [1] |
| No. | Portrait | Chief of the General Satff | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colonel Norbertas Vidrinskas | 21 May 1991 | 3 February 1992 | 258 days | [1] | |
| 2 | Colonel Valdas Tutkus (born 1960) | 3 February 1992 | 1 February 1993 | 364 days | [1] | |
| 3 | Colonel Stasys Knezys (1948–2011) | 1 February 1993 | 3 January 1994 | 336 days | [1] | |
| 4 | Colonel Valdas Tutkus (born 1960) | 3 January 1994 | 1 November 1996 | 2 years, 303 days | [1] | |
| 5 | Colonel Antanas Jurgaitis (born 1957) | 4 November 1996 | 17 March 2003 | 6 years, 133 days | [1] | |
| 6 | Major general Vitalijus Vaikšnoras (born 1961) | 24 April 2003 | 30 June 2008 [lower-alpha 1] | 5 years, 67 days | [1] | |
| 7 | Algis Vaičeliūnas (born 1961) | 23 April 2008 | 29 June 2011 | 3 years, 67 days | [4] | |
| 8 | Brigade general Vilmantas Tamošaitis (born 1966) | 29 June 2011 | 16 August 2016 | 5 years, 48 days | [5] | |
| 9 | Major general Vitalijus Vaikšnoras (born 1961) | 16 August 2016 | 29 July 2019 | 2 years, 344 days | [6] | |
| 10 | Brigade general Gintautas Zenkevičius (born 1962) | 29 July 2019 | 25 September 2020 | 1 year, 57 days | [7] | |
| 11 | Brigade general Mindaugas Steponavičius (born 1974) | 25 September 2020 | Incumbent | 3 years, 124 days | [8] |
The Lithuanian Armed Forces are the military of Lithuania. The Lithuanian Armed Forces consist of the Lithuanian Land Forces, the Lithuanian Naval Force, the Lithuanian Air Force and the Lithuanian Special Operations Force. In wartime, the Lithuanian State Border Guard Service becomes part of the Lithuanian Armed Forces. A special security department handles VIP protection and communications security.
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