Commander of the Estonian Defence Forces
| Commander of the Defence Forces | |
|---|---|
| Kaitseväe juhataja | |
 Standard of the Commander of the Defence Force | |
 | |
| Estonian Defence Forces | |
| Member of | Headquarters of the Estonian Defence Forces |
| Seat | Tallinn, Estonia |
| Nominator | Minister of Defence (Estonia) |
| Appointer | Government of Estonia |
| Term length | Five years (with option for another two years) |
| Formation | 1918 |
| First holder | General Johan Laidoner |
| Website | www.mil.ee |
The Commander of the Defence Forces is Chief of the Estonian Defence Forces and the national defence organisations.
List of Commander of the Defence Forces
| No. | Portrait | Commander of the Defence Force | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Defence branch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | General Johan Laidoner (1884–1953) [a] | 23 December 1918 1 December 1924 12 March 1934 | 26 March 1920 8 January 1925 22 June 1940 | 1 year, 94 days 38 days 6 years, 102 days Total: 7 years, 234 days |  Army | |
| Vacant Soviet occupation | ||||||
| 2 | Major General Jaan Maide (1896–1945) [b] | 18 September 1944 | 24 October 1944 | 36 days | Army | |
| Vacant Soviet rule | ||||||
| 3 | General Aleksander Einseln (1931–2017) [c] | 1 May 1993 | 4 December 1995 | 2 years, 217 days | Army | |
| 4 | Lieutenant General Johannes Kert (born 1959) [d] | 23 January 1996 | 30 June 2000 | 4 years, 159 days | Army | |
| - | Lieutenant colonel Aarne Ermus (born 1966) Acting [3] | 30 June 2000 | 21 September 2000 | 83 days | Army | |
| 5 | Vice admiral Tarmo Kõuts (born 1953) [e] | 21 September 2000 | 14 November 2006 | 6 years, 54 days |  Navy | |
| 6 | General Ants Laaneots (born 1948) | 5 December 2006 | 5 December 2011 | 5 years, 0 days | Army | |
| 7 | General Riho Terras (born 1967) | 5 December 2011 | 5 December 2018 | 7 years, 0 days | Army | |
| 8 | Major General Martin Herem (born 1973) | 5 December 2018 | Incumbent | 5 years, 349 days | Army | |
See also
Notes
- ^ First term served during Estonian War of Independence. Made commander-in-chief twice under martial law. Eventually removed from position on 22 June 1940, after Soviet Union occupied Estonia.
- ^ Served as commander-in-chief in the period between the German occupation and second Soviet occupation. Captured by the Soviets on 24 October 1944.
- ^ Resigned on 4 December 1995 due to a disagreement with the Minister of Defence.
- ^ Was requested to make a resignation by the head of state, head of government and the Minister of Defence, but refused.[1] Impeached by the President of the Republic on 30 June 2000.[2]
- ^ Requested to be resigned to enter politics.
References
- ^ "KKindral Johannes Kert jääb kaitseväe juhiks". epl.delfi.ee. Retrieved 2018-01-19.
- ^ "Johannes Kert: "Ma isegi ei tea, kes just praegu olen!"". epl.delfi.ee. Retrieved 2018-01-19.
- ^ "Johannes Kerdi vabastamine ja Aarne Ermuse nimetamine". www.riigiteataja.ee. Retrieved 2018-01-19.