Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters
Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters | ||
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กองบัญชาการกองทัพไทย | ||
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The Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters (Thai: กองบัญชาการกองทัพไทย) or the RTARF HQ, is the "mostly ornamental"[1]: 5 joint headquarters of the Royal Thai Armed Forces, which is composed of the Royal Thai Army, the Royal Thai Navy and Royal Thai Marine Corps, and the Royal Thai Air Force. Formerly the Supreme Command Headquarters (Thai: กองบัญชาการทหารสูงสุด), the name was changed in February 2008. The headquarters is divided into two branches: the "Command Group" and the "Joint Group".
The headquarters is headed by the
Function
The headquarters is the supreme command of the armed forces and therefore at the apex of the military in Thailand. The headquarters is charged with the command and execution of military operations in wartime. In peacetime, it is charged with maintaining military readiness in case of attack. The headquarters is also in charge of the security of the
History
Temporary command
The Supreme Command Headquarters of the
Permanent command
On 27 September 1957, King
During the 1960s, the government saw the establishment of the permanent Supreme Command Headquarters as a necessity for the preparation of military forces and national defense. On 16 March 1960, the passage of the "Organization of Ministry of Defence Act of 1960" upgraded the Defence Staff Department to Supreme Command Headquarters. This action originally created four groups of agencies within the Supreme Command Headquarters: Staff, Special Services, Combat Support, and Education. The Supreme Command Headquarters is currently organized into five groups: the Command Group, the Joint Staff Group, the Operations Group, the Special Services Group, and the Education Group.
Until 2008, The Supreme Command Headquarters also has operational control of the Border Patrol Police.
Reform
On 2 February 2008, the "Supreme Command Headquarters" became the "Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters" under the "Organization of Ministry of Defence Act, 2008". The position of Supreme Commander became the Chief of Defence Forces.[3][4]
Departments
The RTARF HQ is composed of five groups:[5]
Command Group
- Office of the Headquarters
- Office of the Secretary
- Office of Inspector General
- Office of Internal Audit
- Office of Judge Advocate General
- Office of Welfare
- Office of Inspector General
- Office of Post Engineer
- Thailand Mine Action Center
- Royal Thai Armed Forces Cyber Command
Joint Staff Group
- Directorate of Joint Personnel
- Directorate of Joint Intelligence
- Directorate of Joint Operations
- Directorate of Joint Logistics
- Directorate of Joint Civil Affairs
- Directorate of Joint Communications
- Office of the Comptroller General
Operations Group
- Armed Forces Development Command
- Office of Royal Development Projects
- Armed Forces Security Center
- Counter Terrorist Operations Center
Special Services Group
- Adjutant General's Department
- Finance Department
- Royal Thai Survey Department
- Support Service Department
- Military Information Technology Department
- Department of Border Affairs
Education Group
- National Defence Studies Institute
- Armed Forces Education Department
Commanders
Chiefs of Defence Forces
The "Chief of Defence Forces" (Thai: ผู้บัญชาการทหารสูงสุด) and the Deputy Chiefs of Defence Forces (Thai: รองผู้บัญชาการทหารสูงสุด) are responsible for the command and execution of military operations of the armed forces of Thailand.[6]
References
- ISBN 978-3-946459-04-0. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
- ^ "Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters English version". Archived from the original on April 18, 2009. Retrieved April 18, 2009.
- ^ "Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters English version". Archived from the original on July 4, 2009. Retrieved January 11, 2009.
- ^ อันว่าด้วย .... "กองบัญชาการกองทัพไทย"
- ^ "Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters English version". Archived from the original on January 25, 2009. Retrieved January 11, 2009.
- ^ "Present Commander". Archived from the original on November 29, 2014. Retrieved November 18, 2014.
External links
- RTARF HQ website (in Thai)