The Joint Staff Office (Japanese: 統合幕僚監部, ''Tōgō bakuryō-kanbu'': abbreviation: JSO), also known as the Joint Staff and formerly known as the Joint Staff Council, is one of the administrative agencies within the
Government of Japan
The Government of Japan is the central government of Japan. It consists of legislative, executive (government), executive and judiciary branches and functions under the framework established by the Constitution of Japan. Japan is a unitary st ...
. It is a special organisation under the Japanese
Ministry of Defense responsible for integrating the military operations of the
Ground,
Maritime and
Air
An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosph ...
Self-Defense Forces. The abbreviation of the agency in Japanese is ''Tōbaku'' (統幕).
The JSO is considered to be the equivalent of the
Joint Chiefs of Staff
The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) is the body of the most senior uniformed leaders within the United States Department of Defense, which advises the president of the United States, the secretary of defense, the Homeland Security Council and ...
of foreign armed forces, including that of the United States. Its predecessor was the Joint Chiefs Council (JSC). The office is located in
Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo.
History
The
Chief of Staff, Joint Staff
The , formerly known as the Chairman of the Joint Staff Council from 1954 to 2006, is the highest-ranking military officer and head of the overall Operational Authority (through Joint Staff Office) over the Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF) and ...
is
General Yoshihide Yoshida, who replaced
General Koji Yamazaki after being appointed on 22 March 2023.
On 30 October 2024, Ministry of Defense (MoD) decided to extend Chief of Staff, JS / General Yoshihide Yoshida's term to 29 April 2025.
Organization
The JSO is divided into four departments as can be seen below. Each department has an associated code beginning with the letter J and a corresponding single-digit number.
The Joint Staff also consists of four special staff (Joint Staff Councilor/Director General, Public Affairs Director General and Legal Affairs General).
JSO internal structure consist of the following:
* General Affairs Department (J-1)
* Operations Department (J-3)
* Logistics (J-4)
* Defense Plans and Policy Department (J-5)
* C4 Systems Department (J-6)
Main Executives
Duties
The duties of JSO includes the following.
The JSO is responsible for coordinating the activities of the ground, maritime and air service branches of the
Japan Self-Defense Forces
The are the military forces of Japan. Established in 1954, the JSDF comprises the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, and the Japan Air Self-Defense Force. They are controlled by the Ministry of Defense ...
.
* Vice Chief of Staff, JS support Chief of Staff, JS in fixing and supervising affairs related to JSO.
* Administrative Vice Chief of Staff, JS sum up and organize affairs related to the coordination of important matters related to JSO affairs.
* General Affairs Department is responsible for building work plans related to JSO, account, and benefits.
* Operations Department is in charge of the overall coordination of the action planning and operations related to emergency reaction measures.
* Defense Plans and Policy Department is responsible for defense and security planning from executing mission smoothly through joint operations point of view.
* C4 systems Department is in charge of not only planning and supervising communications necessary for planning actions but also planning and managing the use radio waves.
Affiliated organizations
Founded in 1961, the
Joint Staff College
The (abbreviated JSC) is an educational institution administered by the Ministry of Defense's Joint Staff Office.
History
Established in August 1961, it provides post-National Defense Academy of Japan
, abbreviated is the national, fou ...
is an affiliated school of the JSO and the Ministry of Defense.
References
External links
Joint Staff Office
{{commons category, Joint Staff Office
Japan Self-Defense Forces