The Chief of Defence (puolustusvoimain komentaja) is the commander of the Finnish Defence Forces, under the authority of the Commander in Chief, President of Finland. He commands the three Finnish Army Commands, the Finnish Air Force, the Finnish Navy and is assisted by the Defence Command. He is the highest-ranking officer of the forces (Admiral or General) and his deputy is the Chief of Staff of the Defence Command (pääesikunnan päällikkö). Current Chief of Defence is Admiral Juhani Kaskeala. The Finnish Defence Forces (Finnish Puolustusvoimat; Swedish Försvarsmakten) is a cadre army of 16500, of which 8700 professional soldiers (officers), with a standard readiness strength of 34,700 people in uniform (27,300 army, 3,000 navy, and 4,400 air force). ... The President of Finland (Suomen Tasavallan Presidentti; Republiken Finlands President) is the Head of State of Finland. ... The Finnish Army (Finnish: Maavoimat) is one of the branches of the Finnish Defence Forces. ... The Finnish Air Force (FAF) (Finnish: Ilmavoimat) is one of the branches of the Finnish Defence Forces. ... Finnish Naval Ensign The Finnish Navy (Finnish: Suomen merivoimat) is one of the branches of the Finnish Defence Forces. ... Admiral Juhani Kaskeala Juhani Kaskeala (born 1946) is a Finnish admiral and commander of the Finnish Defence Forces. ...

In contrast to many other European countries, the Finnish Defence Forces have an actual commander with direct authority over all forces, and the Chief of Staff is a separate position.