| Commander of the Armed Forces of Suriname | |
|---|---|
| Commandant van de strijdkrachten van Suriname | |
| |
Colonel Werner Kioe A Sen since 27 October 2022 | |
| National Army | |
| Type | Chief of staff |
| Member of | Security Council |
| Appointer | President of Suriname Chan Santokhi |
| Term length | Not fixed |
| Inaugural holder | Yngwe Elstak |
| Formation | 25 November 1975 |
| Website | Official website |
The Commander of the Armed Forces (Dutch: Commandant van de strijdkrachten) is the professional head of the National Army (Dutch: Nationaal Leger—NL), the military of the Republic of Suriname. The position dates back to the country's independence from the Netherlands in 1975, with the military being named the Surinamese Armed Forces (Dutch: Surinaamse Krijgsmacht—SKM) until after the Sergeants' Coup in 1980.
The Commander of the Armed Forces is appointed by the President of Suriname, who is the commander-in-chief according to the Constitution.[a]
The current Commander of the Armed Forces is Colonel Werner Kioe A Sen, serving since 27 October 2022.[1]
| No. | Portrait | Commander of the Armed Forces | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Defence branch | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
| Elstak, YngweYngwe Elstak (1927–2010) [b] | 25 November 1975 | 25 February 1980 | 4 years, 92 days | Surinamese Armed Forces (Surinaamse Krijgsmacht) | – |
| 2 |
| Bouterse, DésiDési Bouterse (born 1945) | July 1980 | 22 December 1990 | 10 years, 5 months | National Army (Nationaal Leger) | [2] |
| – |
| Graanoogst, IvanIvan Graanoogst Acting [c] | 22 December 1990 | 31 December 1990 | 9 days | National Army (Nationaal Leger) | – |
| (2) |
| Bouterse, DésiDési Bouterse (born 1945) | 31 December 1990 | 3 December 1992 | 1 year, 11 months | National Army (Nationaal Leger) | [3] |
| – |
| Graanoogst, IvanIvan Graanoogst Acting | 3 December 1992 | 15 May 1993 | 163 days | National Army (Nationaal Leger) | – |
| 3 |
| Gorré, ArthyArthy Gorré [nl] (1950–2018) | 15 May 1993 | 30 June 1995 | 2 years, 46 days | National Army (Nationaal Leger) | [4][5] |
| 4 |
| Sedney, GlennColonel Glenn Sedney | 30 June 1995 | 1 July 2001 | 6 years, 1 day | National Army (Nationaal Leger) | – |
| 5 |
| Mercuur, ErnstColonel Ernst Mercuur | 1 July 2001 | 4 February 2010 | 8 years, 218 days | National Army (Nationaal Leger) | – |
| 6 |
| Gilaard, HedwigColonel Hedwig Gilaard | 4 February 2010 | 10 July 2013 | 3 years, 156 days | National Army (Nationaal Leger) | [6] |
| – |
| Benschop, RonniColonel Ronni Benschop [nl] (born 1955) Acting | 10 July 2013 | 4 February 2014 | 209 days | National Army (Nationaal Leger) | [7][8] |
| 7 |
| Benschop, RonniBrigadier general Ronni Benschop [nl] (born 1955) | 4 February 2014 | August 2015 | 1 year, 5 months | National Army (Nationaal Leger) | [8] |
| – |
| Jardim, AdolfColonel Adolf Jardim Acting | August 2015 | March 2019 | 3 years, 7 months | National Army (Nationaal Leger) | [9] |
| 8 |
| Kartodikromo, RobertColonel Robert Kartodikromo | 22 March 2019 | 3 May 2021 | 2 years, 42 days | National Army (Nationaal Leger) | [10] |
| – |
| Axeldongen, Henri vanColonel Henri van Axeldongen Acting | 3 May 2021 | March 2022 | 9 months | National Army (Nationaal Leger) | [11] |
| – |
| Kioe A Sen, WernerLieutenant Colonel Werner Kioe A Sen Acting | 1 April 2022 | 27 October 2022 | 209 days | National Army (Nationaal Leger) | [12] |
| 9 |
| Kioe A Sen, WernerColonel Werner Kioe A Sen | 27 October 2022 | Incumbent | 1 year, 265 days | National Army (Nationaal Leger) | [1] |
|
| ||
|---|---|---|
|
| |
* denotes acting Commander | ||
![Arthy Gorré [nl]](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Arthy_Gorr%C3%A9.png)
![Ronni Benschop [nl]](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ronni_Benschop.png)
