Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

Lars Johan Kihl (born 14 January 1946) is a retired

Swedish Army The Swedish Army ( sv, svenska armén) is the land force of the Swedish Armed Forces. History Svea Life Guards dates back to the year 1521, when the men of Dalarna chose 16 young able men as body guards for the insurgent nobleman Gustav Vas ...

officer. Kihl has served in positions like commanding officer of

Norrland Dragoon Regiment The Norrland Dragoon Regiment ( sv, Norrlands dragonregemente), also K 4, is a Swedish Army unit specialized in arctic warfare and special operations. Located in the province of Lappland, it was historically a cavalry unit that traces its orig ...

(K 4) from 1992 to 1996, as head of the Strategic Plans and Policy Directorate from 2000 to 2004, as head of the Swedish Armed Forces Special Forces from 2000 to 2004 and as head of the

Swedish Armed Forces Headquarters The Swedish Armed Forces Headquarters ( sv, Högkvarteret, HKV) is the highest level of command in the Swedish Armed Forces. Established in 1994, its primary task is to command operations, but is also involved in areas such as military strategy, ...

from 2002 to 2004.

Early life

Kihl became a certified upper secondary school engineer in 1965 before graduating from the Royal Military Academy in 1969.

Career

Kihl was commissioned as an officer in 1969 and was assigned as a second lieutenant to

Västerbotten Regiment The Västerbotten Regiment ( sv, Västerbottens regemente), designations I 19, I XIX, I 20 and I 20/Fo 61, was a Swedish Army infantry regiment that traced its origins back to the 16th century. The regiment's soldiers were originally recruited fr ...

(I 20) in

Umeå Umeå ( , , , locally ; South Westrobothnian: ;). fi, Uumaja; sju, Ubmeje; sma, Upmeje; se, Ubmi) is a city in northeast Sweden. It is the seat of Umeå Municipality and the capital of Västerbotten County. Situated on the Ume River, Ume� ...

the same year. In 1970 Kihl came to Norrland's Dragoons (K 4) in

and two years later he became captain in the Royal Life Guards Squadron (K 1). Kihl then served as company commander in Norrland's Dragoons (K 4) from 1973 to 1977/78 when he came to the Life Guard Dragoons (K 1). He also served in the British Army of the Rhine in 1974. Kihl attended the

Swedish Armed Forces Staff College The oyalSwedish Armed Forces Staff College ( sv, Militärhögskolan, MHS) was from 1961 to 1996 the Swedish Armed Forces highest institution for officers training, for staff and senior executive education and was located in Stockholm. In 1997 it ...

from 1978 to 1980 where he received its

jeton Jetons or jettons are tokens or coin-like medals produced across Europe from the 13th through the 18th centuries. They were produced as counters for use in calculation on a counting board, a lined board similar to an abacus. They also found use ...

"for particularly good study results" and received a scholarship from the Hammarskiöld-Risellschöldska Scholarship Fund (''Hammarskiöld-Risellschöldska stipendiefonden''). He then served as a staff officer from 1980 to 1987 in the Defence Staff and the Army Staff, mainly responsible for planning issues. He also served in the Swedish UN Battalion of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) in

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

in 1984. Kihl was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1985 and attended

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

from 1987 to 1988 and was then battalion/brigade commander in the

Life Regiment Grenadiers Life Regiment Grenadiers ( sv, Livregementets grenadjärer), also I 3, was a Swedish Army infantry unit that was active in various forms 1815–2000. The unit was based in Örebro Garrison in Örebro and belonged to the King's Life and Household T ...

(I 3) in

Örebro Örebro ( , ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, sixth-largest city in Sweden, the seat of Örebro Municipality, and capital of the Örebro County. It is situated by the Närke Plain, near the lake Hjälmaren, a few kilometers in ...

from 1988 to 1990. He was promoted to colonel in 1990 and served as section chief in the Defence Staff's Planning Department before being appointed commanding officer of

(K 4) in Arvidsjaur in 1992. Kihl served there until 1996 when he was promoted to brigadier and appointed head of the Long-term Planning Department at the

. In 1998 he was promoted to major general and was appointed Deputy Director General of Joint Forces Directorate (''Krigsförbandsledningen'') at the Swedish Armed Forces Headquarters, a position he held until July 2000 when he was appointed head of the Strategic Plans and Policy Directorate (''Strategiledningen'') at the Swedish Armed Forces Headquarters and promoted to lieutenant general. Kihl was then head of the Swedish Armed Forces Headquarters from 2002 to 2004 when he retired. He has also been a military expert in the Defense Committee and has largely been associated with visions of network-based defense. Kihl became a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences in 1995. After retiring, Kihl became senior adviser to

Ericsson Microwave Systems (lit. "Telephone Stock Company of LM Ericsson"), commonly known as Ericsson, is a Swedish multinational networking and telecommunications company headquartered in Stockholm. The company sells infrastructure, software, and services in informat ...

(since 2004) and SAAB Systems (since 2007). He is also chairman of the board of Modul 1 Data and board member of 4C Strategy and Countermine Technologies AB.

Dates of rank

*1969 –

Second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

*1971 –

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

*1972 –

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

*1980 –

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

*1985 –

Lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

*1990 –

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

*1996 – Senior colonel *1998 –

Major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

*2000 –

Lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kihl, Johan 1946 births Living people Swedish Army lieutenant generals People from Kristinehamn Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences