Chief of Defense Forces (Georgia)
# Chief of Defense Forces (Georgia)

The Chief of Georgian Defense Forces (Georgian: საქართველოს თავდაცვის ძალების მეთაური, romanized: sakartvelos tavdatsvis dzalebis metauri) is a chief of defence and commander of the Defense Forces of Georgia, under the authority of the Government of Georgia.

## History

The position was (re)introduced in accordance with the Georgian Law on Defense of 31 October 2018. It had its precursor —the Commander-in-Chief of the Army— in the Democratic Republic of Georgia from 1918 to 1921. From the 1990s until 2018 the Chief of the General Staff was the highest-ranking military officer in the Georgian military, chief military adviser to the President, and wartime commander of the Armed Forces of Georgia.

The first holder of the position was Lieutenant General Vladimer Chachibaia. The incumbent is Major General Giorgi Matiashvili.

## Functions and responsibilities

The Chief of Georgian Defense Forces is a chief military officer in the Georgian Defense Forces (GDF). They oversee the coherence of the armed forces organization, combat readiness and mobilization as well as military development of the GDF, and are responsible for conduct of operations in war, including plans of use, general articulation of forces, and distribution of operational means between various groups of forces. The Chief of Georgian Defense Forces is aided, in their functions, by the General Staff of the Georgian Defense Forces. One of the Chief's deputies can, simultaneously, serve as the Chief of the General Staff.

The Chief of Georgian Defense Forces is appointed and dismissed by the President of Georgia (on the advice of the Prime Minister) after the candidacy has been nominated by the Minister of Defense and submitted to the Presidency by the Government of Georgia. The nominee must have the highest military rank and high military education. The Chief reports to the Minister of Defense, the Prime Minister, and the President.

## List

### Commanders-in-Chief of the Democratic Republic of Georgia (1918–1921)

| No. | Commander in Chief | Took office | Left office | Time in office |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Kvinitadze, GiorgiMajor general Giorgi Kvinitadze (1874–1970) | 26 May 1918 | 13 December 1920 | 2 years, 201 days |
| 2 | Odishelidze, IliaGeneral of the army Ilia Odishelidze (1865–1924) | 13 December 1920 | 16 February 1921 | 65 days |
| (1) | Kvinitadze, GiorgiMajor general Giorgi Kvinitadze (1874–1970) | 16 February 1921 | 17 March 1921 | 29 days |

### Chiefs of Georgian Defense Forces (Since 2018)

| No. | Portrait | Chiefs of Defense Forces | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Ref. |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | | Chachibaia, VladimerLieutenant General Vladimer Chachibaia (born 1971) | 20 December 2018 | 1 July 2020 | 1 year, 194 days | |
| 2 | | Matiashvili, GiorgiMajor General Giorgi Matiashvili (born 1977) | 1 July 2020 | Incumbent | 2 years, 228 days | |
