Mirko Šundov (born 15 January 1962) is a Croatian General who served as a Chief of

General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Croatia General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Croatia () is the general staff of the Armed Forces of Croatia, a joint body organized within the Ministry of Defence. It is responsible for development, organization, and equipping, trainin ...

from 2016 until 2020.

Early life and education

Mirko Šundov was born on 15 January 1962 in a small village of Bračević in municipality of Muć near

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enterta ...

. He graduated defense in 1986 from the Faculty of Political Science of the

University of Sarajevo The University of Sarajevo ( Bosnian, Croatian and Serbian: ''Univerzitet u Sarajevu'' / Sveučilište u Sarajevu / Универзитет у Сарајеву) is a public university located in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the larges ...

. He gained his master's degree in 1999 in the field of Geo-sciences, branch Physical Geography, from the

Faculty of Science Faculty may refer to: * Faculty (academic staff), the academic staff of a university (North American usage) * Faculty (division), a division within a university (usage outside of the United States) * Faculty (instrument), an instrument or warrant ...

of the

University of Zagreb The University of Zagreb ( hr, Sveučilište u Zagrebu, ; la, Universitas Studiorum Zagrabiensis) is the largest Croatian university and the oldest continuously operating university in the area covering Central Europe south of Vienna and all of ...

. In 2001, Šundov graduated from the National War College "Ban Josip Jelačić". In 2007, he gained his PhD in the field of Geo-sciences, branch Physical Geography, from the

of the

Career

After graduation in 1986, Šundov started working as a Special Adviser in the Croatian Territorial Defense HQs in Split. During the

Croatian War of Independence The Croatian War of Independence was fought from 1991 to 1995 between Croat forces loyal to the Government of Croatia—which had declared independence from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY)—and the Serb-controlled Yugosl ...

(1991–1995), Šundov at first served as an Assistant Chief of Staff for Operations of the 4th Brigade of the National Guard (1991–1992), and later as its Commander (1992–1995). In 1995, Šundov become Deputy Commander and Chief of Staff of the Area Command Split. After the war, Šundov worked as Director of the Education Directorate CAF GS (1995–1996), Deputy Commander of the Area Command

Ston Ston () is a settlement and a municipality in the Dubrovnik-Neretva County of Croatia, located at the south of isthmus of the Pelješac peninsula. History Because of its geopolitical and strategic position, Ston has had a rich history since ant ...

(1996–1998), Commander of the Area Command

Knin Knin (, sr, link=no, Книн, it, link=no, Tenin) is a city in the Šibenik-Knin County of Croatia, located in the Dalmatian hinterland near the source of the river Krka, an important traffic junction on the rail and road routes between Zagr ...

(1998–2000), Commandant of the Training Command (2001–2003), Commandant of the War College "Ban Josip Jelačić" (2003) in which he also served as a lecturer on module "Military Strategy and Operations, Commandant of the Joint Education and Training Command "Petar Zrinski" (2003–2007), Commandant of the Croatian Defense Academy "Petar Zrinski" (2007–2011), Military Representative of Croatia to

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

and the EU (2011–2014), and Inspector General of Defense of Croatia (2014–2016). In 2016, President

Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović (; born 29 April 1968) is a Croatian politician and diplomat who served as President of Croatia from 2015 to 2020. She was the first woman to be elected to the office since the first multi-party elections in 1990 and ...

and Prime Minister

Tihomir Orešković Tihomir "Tim" Orešković (; born 1 January 1966) is a Croatian Canadian businessman who was Prime Minister of Croatia from January to October 2016. Born in Zagreb, Orešković emigrated to Canada at a young age and spent most of his life there. ...

named him

Chief of the General Staff The Chief of the General Staff (CGS) is a post in many armed forces (militaries), the head of the military staff. List * Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (United States) * Chief of the General Staff (Abkhazia) * Chief of General Staff (Afg ...

Armed Forces of Croatia The Armed Forces of the Republic of Croatia ( hr, Oružane snage Republike Hrvatske – OSRH) is the military service of Croatia. The President is the Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief, and exercises administrative powers in times of war by giv ...

Decorations

Order of Duke Branimir The Order of Duke Branimir ( hr, Red kneza Branimira) is the 7th most important medal given by the Republic of Croatia. The order was founded on April 1, 1995. The medal is awarded for excellence in promoting Croatia in international relations. I ...

with Neck Ribbon *

Order of Nikola Šubić Zrinski The Order of Nikola Šubić Zrinski ( hr, Red Nikole Šubića Zrinskog) is the 9th most important medal given by the Republic of Croatia. The order was founded on April 1, 1995. The medal is awarded for a heroic act in war or imminent danger of ...

Order of Ban Jelačić The Order of Ban Jelačić ( hr, Red bana Jelačića) is the 10th most important medal given by the Republic of Croatia. The order was founded on April 1, 1995. The medal is awarded for excellence in the Armed Forces of the Republic of Croatia. It ...

Order of the Croatian Trefoil The Order of the Croatian Trefoil ( hr, Red hrvatskog trolista) is the sixteenth most important medal given by the Republic of Croatia. The order was founded on 1 April 1995. The medal is awarded for excellence in war, direct war danger or in ext ...

Order of the Croatian Interlace The Order of the Croatian Interlace or Order of the Early Croatian three-strand pattern ( hr, Red hrvatskog pletera) is the seventeenth most important medal given by the Republic of Croatia. The order was founded on 1 April 1995. The medal is aw ...

Commemorative Medal of the Homeland's Gratitude Homeland's Gratitude Medal ( hr, Spomenica domovinske zahvalnosti) is the 19th most important medal in the Croatian honours system. The Homeland's Gratitude Medal has four classes, each for the length of service of 5, 10, 15, and 20 or more yea ...

for 5 years of honorable service *

for 10 years of honorable service *

for 15 years of honorable service *

Homeland War Memorial Medal The Homeland War Memorial ( hr, Spomenica Domovinskog rata) is a Croatian state medal awarded to both Croatian and foreign citizens who participated in the nation's Croatian War of Independence as a volunteer, part of the Croatian Army and Croat ...

Medal for Participation in Operation Storm The Medal for Participation in Operation Storm ( hr, Medalja Oluja) is a medal awarded by the Republic of Croatia for participation in Operation Storm }) was the last major battle of the Croatian War of Independence and a major factor in th ...

* Pistol, Commander of the 4th Brigade of the National Guard, 1992 * Commendation, President of the Republic of Croatia and Supreme Commander, 1992 and 1993

Personal life

Šundov is married to Marijana Šundov with whom he has two children, son Tomo and daughter Ivana. He speaks Croatian, English and Italian.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sundov, Mirko 1962 births Croatian army officers Military personnel of the Croatian War of Independence Living people Order of Duke Domagoj recipients University of Sarajevo alumni