The Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) is the most senior appointment in the Sri Lankan Armed Forces, and the highest-ranking military officer in service, outranking the heads of each service branch. The CDS does not, however, have operational command authority over service branches, but rather oversees inter-service co-operation and develops and implements the joint operations doctrine of the Sri Lankan armed forces. Coordination of inter-service joint operations are handled by the Office of the Chief of the Defence Staff, formally known as the Joint Operations Headquarters. The CDS is the Chairman of a Committee made up of service commanders and is a member of the National Security Council. It's subordinate command is known as the Overall Operational Command.

History

The post could be traced back to post of general officer commanding (GOC) of the Joint Operations Command when General T. I. Weerathunga was first appointed to it on November 2, 1985. The Joint Operations Command was created in 1985 due to a need to co-ordinate of joint operations among the tri-services and the police with the escalation of the Sri Lankan Civil War. The post itself was created in 1999 replacing the civilian post of chief of the Joint Operations Bureau which had existed briefly in 1999. Its powers expanded under the Chief of Defence Staff Act No. 35 of 2009. In recent years, the Chief of the Defence Staff was appointed to the highest rank in the branch of the Sri Lankan armed forces to which he belonged (equivalent to a British "four-star" rank) being a General, an Admiral or an Air Chief Marshal. According to the new Bill, the president of Sri Lanka appoints to the post of Chief of Defence Staff any person presently serving as Commander of the Army, Navy or the Air Force, to function under the direction, supervision and control of the permanent secretary to the Ministry of Defence.

Responsibilities

Supporting and associated posts

The CDS is assisted by a chief of staff (two-star rank) and four director generals (operations and systems, training, naval and air operations, coordination) making up the Office of the Chief of the Defence Staff. In addition, the CDS has a personal staff consisting of the secretary to the CDS, two aides-de-camp, and principal staff officers.

General officer commanding, Joint Operations Command (1985–1993)

Chairman, Joint Operations Bureau (1999–2000)

Chief of the Defence Staff (2000–present)

Ranks and honours are as at the completion of their tenure: