Hellenic National Defense General Staff
Encyclopedia
The Hellenic National Defence General Staff is the senior staff of the Hellenic Armed Forces. It was established in 1950, when the separate armed services ministries were consolidated into the Ministry of National Defence
. Its role in peacetime was as a coordinating and senior consultative body at the disposal of the Greek government, and in wartime as the overall headquarters of the Armed Forces. In recent years, through ongoing efforts at increased inter-services cooperation and integration, the HNDGS has assumed peacetime operational control over the separate branches.
(KYSEA) and to the Minister of Defence on military issues. Through the Chiefs of General Staffs, he carries out the operational commanding of the Joint Headquarters and the units that come under them, as well as the rest forces, when it comes to the issues of operation plans implementation and the Crises management System implementation, conduction of operations outside the national territory and participation of the Armed Forces in the confrontation of special situations during peace time.
He constructs the National Military Strategy after taking into consideration the suggestions of the General Staffs of the Armed Forces Services and according to the directions of the Ministry of Defence he manages and proposes the priority of the armament programs and suggests the general policy directions and priorities on every operational objective.
Traditionally, since 1967, the Chief of the HNDGS holds the rank of full General, Admiral or Air Chief Marshal, and is the only four-star
officer of the Hellenic Armed Forces. Since 3 November 2011, the Chief of the HNDGS is General Michail Kostarakos.
Ministry of National Defence (Greece)
The Hellenic Ministry of National Defense , is the civilian cabinet organization responsible for managing the Military of Greece...
. Its role in peacetime was as a coordinating and senior consultative body at the disposal of the Greek government, and in wartime as the overall headquarters of the Armed Forces. In recent years, through ongoing efforts at increased inter-services cooperation and integration, the HNDGS has assumed peacetime operational control over the separate branches.
Chief
The Chief of the Hellenic National Defence General Staff conducts the HNDGS and is the main adviser to the Government Council for Foreign Affairs and DefenseGovernment Council for Foreign Affairs and Defense
The Government Council for Foreign Affairs and Defence , usually known by its acronym KYSEA , is the supreme decision-making body on issues of foreign policy and national defence of Greece. It was established in 1986 by initiative of then-Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou...
(KYSEA) and to the Minister of Defence on military issues. Through the Chiefs of General Staffs, he carries out the operational commanding of the Joint Headquarters and the units that come under them, as well as the rest forces, when it comes to the issues of operation plans implementation and the Crises management System implementation, conduction of operations outside the national territory and participation of the Armed Forces in the confrontation of special situations during peace time.
He constructs the National Military Strategy after taking into consideration the suggestions of the General Staffs of the Armed Forces Services and according to the directions of the Ministry of Defence he manages and proposes the priority of the armament programs and suggests the general policy directions and priorities on every operational objective.
Traditionally, since 1967, the Chief of the HNDGS holds the rank of full General, Admiral or Air Chief Marshal, and is the only four-star
4 star rank
Four-star rank is a term used to describe a very senior commander in many of the armed services holding a rank described by the NATO OF-9 code. The term is also used by some armed forces which are not NATO members...
officer of the Hellenic Armed Forces. Since 3 November 2011, the Chief of the HNDGS is General Michail Kostarakos.
Past chiefs of HNDGS
| Period | Rank | Name and Surname | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011–present | General | Michail Kostarakos | |
| 2009–2011 | Air Chief Marshal | Ioannis Giagkos Ioannis Giagkos Air Chief Marshal Ioannis Giagkos is a Greek Air Force officer and a former Chief of the National Defense General Staff of Greece.-Career:Air Chief Marshal Giagkos was born in December 1951 in Trikala, Thessaly. He attended the Greek Air Force Academy and graduated in 1974 as a pilot officer... |
|
| 2007–2009 | General | Dimitrios Grapsas Dimitrios Grapsas General Dimitrios Grapsas is a Greek military officer, who served as the Chief of the Hellenic National Defense General Staff from August 2007 to August 2009.-Biography:General Grapsas was born in 1948 in Ypati in the Phthiotis prefecture... |
|
| 2005–2007 | Admiral | Panagiotis Chinofotis Panagiotis Chinofotis Admiral Panagiotis Chinofotis is a Member of Parliament with the New Democracy party, a former Vice-Minister of the Interior and a former Chief of the Hellenic National Defense General Staff.Born in Athens, Chinofotis graduated from the Hellenic Naval Academy and was commissioned an... |
|
| 2002–2005 | General | Georgios Antonakopoulos | |
| 1999–2002 | General | Manousos Paragioudakis | |
| 1996–1999 | Air Chief Marshal | Athanasios Tzoganis Athanasios Tzoganis Air Chief Marshal Athanasios Tzoganis is a retired Hellenic Air Force officer who served as Chief of the Hellenic National Defence General Staff in 1996–1999. Born in Skourtou, Aetoloacarnania, he entered the Hellenic Air Force Academy in 1959 and graduated first in his class in 1962... |
|
| 1993–1996 | Admiral | Christos Lymberis | dismissed following the Imia crisis |
| 1993 | General | Dimitrios Skarvelis | |
| 1990–1993 | General | Ioannis Veryvakis | |
| 1989–1990 | General | Stamatis Vellidis | |
| 1984–1989 | Air Chief Marshal | Nikolaos Kouris | |
| 1982–1984 | Admiral | Theodoros Degiannis | |
| 1980–1982 | General | Agamemnon Gratsios | |
| 1976–1980 | General | Ioannis Davos | |
| 1974–1976 | General | Dionysios Arbouzis Dionysios Arbouzis Dionysios Arbouzis was a Greek Army officer who rose to the rank of General and held the position of Chief of the Hellenic Armed Forces in 1974-1976, after the fall of the Greek military junta... |
Chief of the Armed Forces following the fall of the military regime |
| 1973–1974 | General | Grigorios Bonanos | Chief of the Armed Forces during the military regime |
| 1973 | General | Dimitrios Zagorianakos | Chief of the Armed Forces during the military regime |
| 1967–1973 | General | Odysseas Angelis | Installed by the military regime. Styled "Chief of the Armed Forces" after December 1967 |
| 1967 | Vice Admiral | Spyridon Avgeris | |
| 1965–1967 | Lt. General | Konstantinos Tsolakas | |
| 1962–1965 | Lt. General | Ioannis Pipilis | |
| 1959–1962 | Lt. General | Athanasios Frontistis | |
| 1954–1959 | Lt. General | Konstantinos Dovas Konstantinos Dovas Konstantinos Dovas was a was a Greek general and interim Prime Minister.Dovas was born in Konitsa. In 1918, Dovas graduated from the Greek Military Academy. During the Greek Civil War between the government and the communist Democratic Army of Greece, he was commander of the Konitsa garrison and... |
|
| 1952–1954 | Lt. General | Stylianos Kitrilakis | |
| 1951–1952 | Lt. General | Theodotos Grigoropoulos | |
| 1950–1951 | Field Marshal Field Marshal Field Marshal is a military rank. Traditionally, it is the highest military rank in an army.-Etymology:The origin of the rank of field marshal dates to the early Middle Ages, originally meaning the keeper of the king's horses , from the time of the early Frankish kings.-Usage and hierarchical... |
Alexandros Papagos | resigned to found Greek Rally Greek Rally Greek Rally , Ellinikos Synagermos ) was a Greek political party founded on 6 August 1951 by former general Alexandros Papagos. The party encompassed a broad spectrum of the royalist conservative right in Greek society and was modeled on the Charles de Gaulle's Rassemblement du Peuple Français... party |